Over 700 illegal water lines disconnected

May 22, 2021 Metro BLISTT

Baguio City May 20, 2021 – The Baguio Water District (BWD) was able to detect and disconnect a total of 713 illegal water networks in the past eight years from 2013 to March 31, 2021.
This was based on a BWD report to the City Council in compliance to a city resolution penned in 2013 as to periodic inspection, detection of illegal connections and destroyed water lines, and installation of new water pipelines.
Accordingly, BWD Manager Engr. Salvador Royeca submitted information as to periodic instructions, detection of illegal connections and damaged waterlines since 2013 up to March 31, 2021.
Illegal connections plugged and apprehended yearly are 38, 104, 69, 161, 78, 98, 93, 56 and 16 with corresponding repaired leaking pipes per year with an average of more than 6,000 annually except for 2018 with 7,071; 2019 with 6,024; 2020 with 5,243 and for the first quarter of 2021, 1,466 leaking pipes repaired.
Engr. Royeca also reported that in 2013, water system rehabilitation projects funded by the AusAid and abandoned old lines at areas 1 and 2 were activated. From 2014 up to the first quarter of 2021, pipes of varying sizes and lengths were repaired.
For selected barangays under Area 3, improvement/replaces of deteriorated pipelines for the Tourism Water project was recently completed, he added.
Aged and dilapidated water pipelines are replaced to ensure quality and integrity, as well as to reduce water wastage. Periodic and continuous inspection shall be done to locate and eliminate illegal connections, and replace damaged waterlines as well, Royeca ended.
The Sangguniang Panglungsod local legislative staff with Secretary Atty. Brenner Bengwayan regularly conducts status report and monitoring and evaluation to ascertain compliance or noncompliance to ordinances and resolutions.
Julie G. Fianza/ABN