CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga (PIA) — The Baliwag Water District (BWD) has renewed its commitment to continuously provide top-tier services to its concessionaires.
During the 26th episode of the Kapihan sa Bagong Pilipinas of the Philippine Information Agency, BWD Legal Services and Public Information Head Jose Angelo Pagkanlungan reiterated their dedication to addressing the growing demand of the community for water supply and sanitation services.
“We are steadfast in our mission to provide safe, adequate, reliable, and affordable water and sanitation services. Our commitment is anchored on our vision to become a world-class water utility providing excellent service and leading the industry through innovations and sustainable development,” he said.
As part of its commitment, the BWD is investing in their human resources through training activities both locally and internationally.
“We believe that if our employees are competent enough, they will perform well. That is one big factor for the success of an agency. That is why we invest in our human resources because we see the return on investment to the people we send to training are really delivering afterwards,” he explained.
BWD also continues to develop additional water sources to address the increase in water demand brought about by the increase in population.
“In a span of two years, we have added four pumping stations and built three storage facilities which we fill with water during night time to augment our regular water supply during peak hours,” Pagkanlungan said.
He added that they continue with their pipe laying projects, the biggest of which covers around 10 to 11 kilometers in preparation for the Bulacan Bulk Water Supply, in order to provide sufficient water supply to its concessionaires.
Pagkanlungan also cited that BWD is one of the first water districts to fully own and operate a fully mechanized septage treatment facility that caters not only to Baliwag City, but also to eight other water districts and one municipality in the province.
These include the water districts of Angat, Bustos, Calumpit, Guiguinto, Norzagaray, Pandi, Plaridel, and San Miguel; and the municipality of Pulilan.
“Water districts in Bulacan are mandated under a Supreme Court Mandamus as part of the Manila Bay Rehabilitation Program, requiring us to implement a septage management program. However, putting up one is very expensive so we cluster the nearby municipalities and we provide services for them,” he said.
In addition to infrastructure improvements, it also partnered with the barangays in the city to enhance responsiveness to concerns and make them a more trusted partner in the community.
Under the Memorandum of Understanding, the BWD will work with the barangays to facilitate timely reporting and investigation of concerns which aims to result in quicker response time in leak repairs, and mitigate low pressure problems and contamination caused by illegal connections and improper design of booster pumps.
“Through this, we also aim to have a more efficient reporting system because concerns are reported to us by the barangay instead of all residents calling us [BWD] at the same time,” Pagkanlungan said.
As of September 2024, BWD has 29 pumping stations, eight booster stations, and 12 storage facilities with an average monthly production of 838,905.48 cubic meters.
Currently, it also employs 162 personnel and caters to 42,173 service connections. (CLJD/MJSC, PIA Region 3-Pampanga)
