West Zone concessionaire Maynilad Water Services, Inc. (Maynilad) has started using an advanced algae monitoring probe to strengthen its capability to address algae presence in the raw water of Laguna Lake.
The P3.9-million flourescence technology—acquired from German company bbe Moldaenke GmbH—is essential to the water production process of Maynilad’s Putatan Water Treatment Plant (PWTP) in Muntinlupa City, which taps Laguna Lake as a raw water source. The lake has periodic algal blooms, especially during mid-summer up to the onset of the rainy season.
Maynilad’s PWTP produces an average of 150 million liters of potable water per day, and serves some two million customers. The company is also currently building a second treatment plant in Muntinlupa, which will likewise tap into Laguna Lake.
The flouroprobe technology easily measures the cell count of algae by using the chlorophyll-a content in the cells of different algae classes. Increasing algae concentration can affect the odor and taste of raw water, but this new technology will allow Maynilad to detect it early, thus enabling it to promptly implement treatment interventions and avert water quality issues.
”Given the now-unpredictable variations in raw water quality, tapping new technologies is necessary so that we can sustain the production of potable drinking water for our customers,” said Maynilad President and CEO Ramoncito S. Fernandez.
Maynilad is the largest private water concessionaire in the Philippines in terms of customer base. It is the agent and contractor of the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) for the West Zone of the Greater Manila Area, which is composed of the cities of Manila (certain portions), Quezon City (certain portions), Makati (west of South Super Highway), Caloocan, Pasay, Parañaque, Las Piñas, Muntinlupa, Valenzuela, Navotas and Malabon all in Metro Manila; the cities of Cavite, Bacoor and Imus, and the towns of Kawit, Noveleta and Rosario, all in Cavite Province.
