Consumers urged to conserve water

ALAMINOS, Laguna,(PNA) – The Alaminos Water District called on consumers and stakeholders here Monday to conserve water, saying the natural resource has limitations, just like other resources.

The global community will observe “World Water Day” on March 22.

Emiliano D. Castillo, Alaminos Water District general manager, said that through the years, potable water supply and consumption may reach critical levels due to climate change and every stakeholder should do his or her part to conserve this vital natural resource.

Castillo urged household and consumers to observe simple and basic water conservation practices such as checking on water pipes for leaks or busted lines and dripping faucets due to loose valves.

While reeling with prices of electricity, households are advised to also pay attention to unnecessary wastage of the precious resources due to leakage, which will cause them additional costs on water consumption as registered in their water meters.

The Alaminos Water District manager also advised households using water tanks and water pumps to check on the water line, pump and tank if the automated mechanisms are in good operational conditions to avoid extra consumption costs.

Castillo said “watering of plants must be done sparingly especially during the dry season as plants also have their natural limited absorptive capacity for water intake.”

He said even fallen leaves on the ground or any earth-covering plants should not be swept or removed to allow these earth-coverings to maintain the moisture content of the soil and avoid dry exposure.

“Water conservation is everybody’s concern,” said Castillo and “ doing these simple tips could help a lot to save on water and in fact contribute to giving access of safe drinking water to other residents in need in slums and depressed areas.”

The United Nations General Assembly set the date on March 22, 1993 as the first World Water Day owing to increasing demand for water access, allocation and services when it hosted the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED).

Each year, World Water Day highlights a specific aspect of freshwater. Under the theme "Water and Sustainable Development", the year 2015 provides an important opportunity to consolidate and build upon the previous World Water Days to highlight water's role in the sustainable development agenda.

The global observance serves to bring attention on the importance of freshwater and advocating for the sustainable management of freshwater resources. (PNA) 
LAP/ZT/R. Taningco/eds