PM Lee urges Singaporeans to conserve water

PM Lee urges Singaporeans to conserve water

SINGAPORE - Water levels at the Linggiu Reservoir in Johor has fallen to record lows, leading Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong to urge Singaporeans to conserve water, following Environment and Water Resources Minister Vivian Balakrishnan's warning on Monday.

The Linggiu Reservoir is a key reservoir which enables Singapore to draw water from the Johor River.

PM Lee cautioned on his Facebook page that the Public Utilities Board will be unable to draw all the water from the Johor River if the dry weather continues and Linggiu Reservoir is emptied.

The Linggiu Reservoir ensures that the Johor River can provide 250 million gallons per day for Singapore, Dr Balakrishnan wrote on his Facebook page on Monday.

"In fact, the probable onset of the El Nino dry spell means this is likely to drop further, compromising our biggest source of water," he added.

Imported water makes up about 60 per cent of Singapore's water consumption needs.

PM Lee visited Linggiu Reservoir in 2012 and decided to build more NEWater and desalination plants, to make Singapore's water supply more resilient.

"One more NEWater plant will be completed next year, and a third desalination plant in 2017," PM Lee wrote. Singapore currently has four NEWater plants.

These additional capacities will ensure that about 70 per cent of Singapore's water needs can be met using treated seawater and Newater then.

grongloh@sph.com.sg

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