Magat dam may halt H2O release for irrigation

BAYOMBONG Nueva Vizcaya - If water levels continue to drop, Magat Dam in Northern Philippines may have to stop providing water for irrigation before the end of March. Engineer Saturnino Tenedor of the Magat Dam’s irrigation department told GMANews.TV that the dam’s current water level could only last for a few more weeks. The National Irrigation Administration (NIA), which manages the dam, has started to ration water for release to agricultural lands in Isabela last January. But after the dam’s water level has dropped to critical lows, NIA officials said that they will have no recourse but to close its gates for water distribution especially if no rains will come in the coming weeks. “Sa tantya namin baka March 21 ay tuluyan nang itigil ang pag release ng tubig," Tenedor said, adding that by the time NIA closes its gates, the farmers would have already harvested all their produce. (Based on estimates, we might stop releasing water by March 21.) “But the problem does not end there," he said. “If rains will not come to replenish the (water) reservoir, there will be no water available to irrigate farms for the next planting season which starts in June." The 30 year-old Magat Dam, once Asia’s biggest, is the source of water for some 84,000 agricultural lands in Cagayan, Isabela and Quirino. Some 100, 000 hectares of farmlands in Isabela alone had been affected by the rainless season that was first felt last December. The province has already lost nearly P4 billion worth of corn and rice crops. As of 11 a.m. of Sunday, March 7, the dam’s water levels further dropped to 154.55 meters, which is already way below the normal level at 183 meters. In the meantime, Magat power plant officials also disclosed that the record drop in the dam’s water level has drastically cut its capacity to operate at normal levels. Melvyn Eugenio, plant manager of the Magat hydro-power plant said generation capacity is now down to only 20 megawatts with power supplies becoming more intermittent. The dam’s minimum operational water level is 160 meters to be able to generate the desired amount of stable electricity. Generating a maximum of 360 megawatts, it is second to San Roque Dam in Pangasinan as the biggest electricity provider among hydro plants in the Luzon grid. Also experiencing critical water levels are Angat and Ipo dams in Bulacan; Ambuklao and Binga dams in Benguet; La Mesa dam in Quezon City; Nueva Ecija’s Pantabangan dam; and the San Roque dam in Pangasinan. When President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s paid a visit last week to Isabela province, she made assurances that her government is doing its best to prevent power shortage. The power outages were due to mechanical troubles in the coal-fired power plants of Masinloc and Sual. The said plants also act as back up whenever shut downs occur in hydro-powered plants, she said. - RJAB Jr., GMANews.TV