Baguio to drill 30 more deep wells to mitigate effects of El Niño

BAGUIO CITY: The Baguio Water District (BWD) targets to drill 30 additional deep wells until 2026 to boost water supply and cushion the impact of El Niño phenomenon, which happens every three to seven years. Engineer Salvador Royeca, manager of the city's sole water concessionaire, told journalists Thursday that each deep well is capable of producing at least 140 gallons per minute, boosting the supply from the 68 existing wells that provide water to at least 90 percent of the city's household. The additional deep wells, works on some have been started, will provide an average additional supply of 10,000 cubic meters per day, he said. 'The deep well drilling project, amounting to about PHP6 million to PHP10 million a unit, is an El Niño mitigating measure of the BWD that will also address the increasing demand for potable water in households and commercial establishments,' he said. The project is being financed through internally-generated funds and a loan from the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP ). To date, the water concessionaire sources its supply partly from four springs and the two catchment basins namely the Busol watershed and the catchment reservoir at Mount Santo Tomas. Source: Philippines News Agency