The Water Resource Management Office (WRMO) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is recalibrating the subsidized water rate extended to low-income families and replacing it with one more in keeping with their actual consumption.
DENR Undersecretary Carlos Primo David said that instead of a blanket subsidy imposed over such households at the moment, a target but still undetermined rate is being planned.
“We used to think that if a household is low-income, water use is only minimal as they do not have washing machines, cars to clean or gardens to tend to. But in truth, it seems that many low-income households use more water than ten cubic meters a month,” David told reporters at the sidelines of a forum hosted by Maynilad in Quezon City.
According to David, the extended family structure of such households result in far more water consumption than other households and thus the need for a target subsidy rate rather than a blanket rate. Subsidized households are those consuming water up to 10 cubic meters a month.
Under consideration is the proposal for automatic subsidy extension of households under the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program or 4Ps, among others.
Maynilad data show 25 percent of its billed customers are lifeline households, which means that of the 1,538,321 billed connections as at end-2022, 384,580 are lifeline consumers.
Manila Water has far more lifeline consumers totaling 58,246 in the same period.
David also said the NWRB has increased the water allocation granted the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System’s (MWSS) to 51 cubic meters per second instead of only 50 CMS from June 16 this year to the end of the month, as requested.
He said the additional allocation comes from the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) whose management agreed to the reduction with the start of the rainy season.
David said the extra 1 CMS allocation from the NIA is on standby basis and provided to the concessionaire as and when needed.
