Klang Valley residents can now rest easy as Selangor Menteri Besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim today announced an end to the almost two-month long water rationing exercise in the region.

During a press conference at the state secretariat building in Shah Alam this afternoon, Abdul Khalid stated that water rationing will cease tomorrow.

“Water rationing will cease starting tomorrow, May 1,” he said after the executive council meeting.

He said that all homes will receive normal water supply starting Thursday or Friday at the latest for areas with low water pressure.

The same was earlier announced by Water Services Commission (Span) chairperson Ismail Kassim’s ( right ) during a morning press conference in Kangar, Perlis.

Ismail said the decision was made as Sungai Selangor dam levels had reached 40.23 percent.

He said the decision was approved by Span, the Water and Sewerage Department (JPS), Selangor Water Management Council (Luas) and Kumpulan Semesta Sdn Bhd (KSSB) which manages the Sungai Selangor dam.

“The state is of the opinion that we need not wait for the dam to reach 50 percent as we are confident that our efforts like pumping pond water, as well as continuous rainfall at reservoirs, will raise the levels.

“The state and other relevant bodies like Luas, Span and JPS will continue to monitor the latest development to ensure the levels rise and to review the decision to cease rationing from time to time,” he said.

Defence clearance sought for Thai technology

The MB added that he has also written to Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein yesterday to obtain approval from the federal government to use the Thai cloud seeding technology Ejectable Flare Rack.

“Based on available information, we found that there are restrictions to using this technique as there are repercussions to national security.

“At the same time, the state must make all efforts to increase water supply in preparation of the drought which is expected from May to September,” he said.

He added that JPS will also supply 10 water pumps to pump water from former mining ponds and other parts to Sungai Selangor.

“RM10 million has been allocated by the state government to purchase pumps and build infrastucture for this,” he said.

The pumps will also be used to pump excess water from parts of the river to the ponds as a means of water storage for the drought season.

“With this, the water supplied from the dams will be controlled and the critical stage can be averted for another five to six months.

“The state will also increase security measures at the ponds and gazette these areas to be restricted access,” he said.

The ponds which will be used for alternative supply of water has been identified by Luas since 2009, he added.

“In fact, monitoring has been done on the ponds through sampeling in 2011, 2012 and 2013. We found no chemical or heavy metals found and the water quality met the Selangor Health Department standards,” he said.

“The state pledges to ensure safety for all consumers and will provide full information on the quality of the water from the ponds for anyone has doubts.

“The state government is appealing to all government to use treated water wisely and to harvest rain water for outdoor activities like washing cars and watering plants,” he said.