MARTAPURA, South Kalimantan: Tens of thousands of customers of Regional Water Company (PDAM) Intan Banjar will experience water shortages for one week due to maintenance of irrigation channels, Antaranews reported.
Technical Director of PDAM Intan Banjar Said Umar here on Monday said maintenance is a routine activity by South Kalimantan Public Works Agency to reduce weeds by cutting the water plants in the primary channel.
Irrigation channel is a source of main raw Water for Water Treatment Plant (IPA) II Pinus. The maintenance causing disruption of water service in the main zone which covers almost the entire territory of Banjarbaru and Martapura.
“The number of customers affected by the maintenance of irrigation in the main zone reached 30 thousand house connections,” said Said, accompanied by General Director Harmadi Budi Santoso.
Head of Production Noor Ifansyah said, the maintenance of irrigation canals causing water levels in irrigation channels to decrease so that the production of clean water also dropped.
“The normal height of water is one meter, but during maintenance it usually reduces to the remaining 40 centimeters. Then the water production decreases by 20 percent from normal production,” he said.
Said said clean water shortages experienced by customers lasted from June 5 to 9, 2015.