YAB Chief Minister's Speech on World Water Day 2007
World Water Day 2007, 21 April 2007
YB Dato' Koay Kar Hwa, Penang EXCO, YB Encik Teng Chang Yeow, Penang EXCO, YB Dato' Dr Anwar Fazal, WWP Advisor, YB Quah ADUN Bukit Bendera, Ir Jaseni Maidinsa, Acting General Manager PBAPP Sdn Bhd, Y.Bhg Setia Usaha Kerajaan, Dato'-Dato', Datin-Datin, Tuan-Tuan & Puan-Puan sekalian. Terlebih dahulu saya ingin mengucapkan tahniah kepada Profesor Dr Chan Ngai Weng dan Water Watch Penang kerana berjaya menganjurkan Hari Air Sedunia pada hari ini dengan begitu meriah dan berjaya. Kami bersyukur pagi ini bercuaca baik. Memang rakyat Pulau Pinang bertuah kerana cukup air untuk kegunaan harian. Pulau Pinang mempunyai harga air yang paling murah di seluruh Malaysia tetapi jaganlah kami membazir air sebab ini. Jika anda membazir dan tidak mengambil berat tenatng penjimatan air, maka sumber air akan menjadi semakin berkurangan. Mungkin tarif air terpaksa dinaikkan pada masa depan. Jadi, semua rakyat perlu menjimat air untuk memastikan sumber air pada masa depan berkekalan.
Profesor Chan has given you a good idea about how scarce water is around the world. After listening to him, we can see how lucky and fortunate we Malaysians are. But is Penang State truly reflective of Malaysia’s richness in water resources?
(1) Penang is not a water-rich state: Though Malaysians are lucky with so much water, we must remember that rainfall is not evenly distributed over SPACE and TIME. Some states have very heavy annual rainfall but some states have barely enough rainfall. Yet some states like Penang have very small water catchments and no large rivers, and 97 % of our water supply is from rivers. We do not have much groundwater. Therefore, we in Penang must never forget that our state is not rich in water resources. Yes, we are richer economically and in terms of industrial development, but we are “Poor” in water resources as 80 % of our water supply flows in from the Sg Muda which has its catchments in Kedah. A study by WWF Malaysia carried out by Water Watch Penang classifies Penang as a “water-poor” state alongside Perlis, Selangor, Melaka & Negri Sembilan (Table 1). The water-rich states are Perak, Pahang, Terengganu, Johor, Kelantan, Sabah & Sarawk. But fortunately, Penang has the Best Water Company in Malaysia, maybe even in Asia (perhaps just behind Singapore). So, the lesson is we Penangites must not waste water. We must save water because we do not have that much of water to splash it around! So we have to be very careful when we talk about Malaysia being rich in water resources, as not all states are equal in water resources. Table 1: Classification of States according to water availability in Malaysia.
| Water-Rich States | Moderately Water-Rich States | Water-Poor States |
| Perak | Kedah | Perlis |
| Pahang | Pulau Pinang | |
| Terengganu | Selangor | |
| Johor | Melaka | |
| Kelantan | Negeri Sembilan | |
| Sabah | ||
| Sarawak |
(2) The UN World Water day theme this year “Coping with Water Scarcity” is specially chosen because the word “Coping” implies the need to cooperate (to help one another cope): The theme highlights the significance of cooperation and the importance of an integrated approach to water resource management at both international and local levels. Equity and rights, cultural and ethical issues are essential and must be addressed when dealing with limited water resources. Imbalances between availability and demand, the degradation of groundwater and surface water quality, intersectoral competition, interregional and international disputes, all of these questions revolve around coping with scarce water resources. Hence, countries with rich water resources ought to share some of their water with those that are poor in water resources – maybe through selling them water (like how Malaysia is helping Singapore), technology transfer (high-tech water treatment, wastewater treatment, desalination, etc), etc.
In Malaysia, water-rich states must also help their water-poor brothers. Hence, all States in Malaysia must work together in water management, help one another. For example, Penang’s success in water management (PBAPP Sdn Bhd) can be shared with other states who are not so successful in water management. In return, water-rich states who benefit from our experience can in turn share some of their water with us. Like what Pahang is doing with Selangor. The government is building a large water canal/pipeline cum tunnel that brings water from Pahang to Selangor. We must cooperate to help one another. Perak and Kedah, our immediate neighbours, should collaborate with Penang.
(3) Penang’s Water Tariff is the cheapest in Malaysia but you must not waste water or the government will have no choice but to increase tariff if people waste so much water until there is not enough water: Penang’s water tariffs is the lowest in the country compared to other states that have very high tariffs (and yet these states keep increasing their tariffs). Penang can afford to keep tariffs low because we have the most efficient Water Company in the whole country – NRW is lowest < 20%, highest coverage of piped water supply, production cost is lowest, quickest response to emergency calls, good water quality & water pressure & lowest tariffs).
(4) Penangite must be responsible water users – currently Penangites are one of the highest users of water per day in Malaysia. Penangites need to reduce water use. Talk about table below.
PER CAPITA DOMESTIC WATER USE PER DAY
•Penangite = 400 litres
•Average Malaysian = 300 litres
• Urbanite in Malaysia = 500 litres
• Rural Folk in Malaysia = 200 litres
• Indian in India = 100 litres
• African = 50 litres
• Middle East Dweller = 150 litres
• American/Canadian = 800 litres
• AVERAGE WATER USE OF PROF CHAN = 140 litres
(5) PBAPP Sdn Bhd – AIMS TO ACHIVE THE HIGHEST STANDARDS* Achieved IOS90001 Quality Standard in its water treatment & operation (12/08/2003)* Achieved ISO14001 Environmental Stadand. (23rd April, 2005: PBAPP gets ISO 14001 certification)
* Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) – (i) PBAPP Sdn Bhd practises a rigid Environmental Policy whereby wastes minimisation, reduction of energy use, clean production process, reduction in the use of chemicals (find alternatives), prevention of pollution, Environmental management System (EMS), monitoring & audits. (ii) Partnerships/Support for NGO in Water Conservation and other areas.
Penang has planned ahead to address water issues. For example, increasing the capacity of the Mengkuang dam is costing RM700 million.
http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Saturday/NewsBreak/20070421170647/Article 24 April 2007
BERNAMA2007/04/21 PENANG: The Mengkuang Dam expansion project will cost the Government RM700 million, Penang Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon said. He said dam is being expanded because the Government planned to increase its water storage capacity from the 24 billion litres at present by four times to 96 billion litres. “We have begun land acquisition for the project,” he said in his speech at the launching of the state-level World Water Day 2007 here today. He said the expansion would help Penang meet its future water supply needs as water consumption continued to increase significantly. Koh said Perbadanan Bekalan Air Pulau Pinang Sdn Bhd had projected that water consumption in Penang would increase by an average 2.5 per cent per annum until the year 2020. “Penang has ’over achieved’ this projection in the past three years. Water consumption increased by 3.7 per cent in 2004, 3.1 per cent in 2005 and 3.5 per cent in 2006,” he said. He said that last year, water consumption in Penang totalled 249.44 billion litres compared with 240.99 billion litres in 2005. “Every person in Penang consumes an average of 270 litres water per day while in Singapore, where water tariffs are 10 times more expensive, they get by with only 160 litres per person per day,” he said, adding that Malaysians must play their part in preserving the precious resource. — BERNAMA