The state of water resources in the Philippines - Greenpeace

III. Status of water use and supply
The Department of Science and Technology, through its Integrated Program on
Cleaner Production Technologies, encourages the adoption of clean technologies
by providing support mechanisms for the industrial sector for the identification,
evaluation, selection, and acquisition of cost-effective technologies for cleaner
production.
Part of government’s response to the problem is the formulation of various
policies, monitoring and analysis, researches, and capacity building among key
stakeholders as part of their regular functions, and through the different programs
implemented by concerned agencies.
Alternatives to conventional sewage treatment are now being introduced.
Wetlands are being designed to serve as simple and low-cost wastewater
treatment plants that use natural processes for filtration and cleaning. Partially
treated sewage can also be used for fish propagation (EMB, 2006).
(While this inexpensive, low-maintenance technology is reportedly in high
demand in Central America, Eastern Europe, and Asia. However, in the United
States, treatment-wetland technology has not yet gained national regulatory
acceptance (Cole, Stephen; “Emergence of Treatment Wetlands”, 1998).
In part, this reluctance exists because the technology is not yet completely
understood. Knowledge of how the wetland works is not far enough advanced to
provide engineers with detailed predictive models. And, being natural systems,
their performance is variable, subject to the vagaries of changing seasons and
vegetative cycles. These treatment wetlands also pose a potential threat to
wildlife attracted to this new habitat--an ecosystem exposed to toxic compounds
(Cole, S, 1998).
(Another concern expressed by some experts is the nitrogen removal process, as
this is considered a serious drawback in using constructed wetlands for
wastewater treatment (Simons, J., 2000).)
A. Leading consumers or users of water
The country’s major water users are the agricultural sector which accounts for
85.27 percent of the total water supply, the industrial sector which consumes
7.46% and lastly the domestic users which use the remaining 7.27percent (PEM,
2003; 2004).
In the Philippines, agriculture as a whole is the greatest consumer of water.
Irrigation constitutes a large portion of total water consumption by agriculture; it is
considered the biggest water user in the country, notwithstanding the fact that
only 47 percent of the potentially irrigable area of 3.16 million hectares is
irrigated. About 95 percent of the irrigated area is devoted to paddy and about 70
percent of paddy production comes from irrigated lands (Dayrit, H., The
Philippines: Formulation of a water vision, NWRB).
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