What We Know About Kaliwa Dam

Under its Water Security Plan for 2018-2023, the Kaliwa Dam is only one of many projects undertaken by the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS). If the old project was pushed forward, alongside Angat Dam, Manila's sole water storage facility, it was supposed to provide water.

It is planned that the Kaliwa Dam Project will be completed in five years, but the project is already delayed because of permit issues. The region is situated within the mountain range of the Sierra Madre and has been described as rich in biodiversity and is endemic. A decent number of birds, mammals, amphibians and reptiles, along with several native trees that are near extinction have been reported in the area. A large dam infrastructure, classified as an Environmentally Critical Project requiring an Environmental Impact Statement, is classified as the project size.

The project is supposed to provide water source reliability and increase supply from Angat Dam, thus preventing problems with water shortages. It aims to ease the pressure on the water system of the Angat-Ipo-La-Mesa and guarantee the supply of water during the El Niño outbreak. The measure consists of the A-B-C ventures and the consortium's Wawa Dam project, headed by businessmen Enrique K. Razon and Oscar Violago, before the Kaliwa Dam is completed. Supported by the Chinese government through China's Official Development Assistance (ODA), the China Energy Engineering Corp. will implement the P12.2 billion Kaliwa Dam project.

The dam, 60 meters high, will be constructed along the Kaliwa (left) River, under the jurisdiction of the municipality of Barangay Pagsangahan, General Nakar, and the municipality of Barangay Magsaysay, Infanta, both in the province of Quezon. A 27.7-kilometer raw-water conveyance tunnel that will lead to water treatment facilities will supplement it. If completed, the project with the capacity to provide 600 MLD can be maximized with its water supply tunnel having a capacity of 2,400 MLD, thus relieving the burden on the 60-year-old Angat dam, currently the source of 97% of the raw water supplied to Metro Manila and the nearby towns of Cavite and Rizal.

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