JOHOR BARU, May 10 — The water level at five Water Treatment Plants (WTP) in the state is expected to be at risk of reaching a critical level if the El Nino phenomenon continues until July.

State Public Works, Transport and Infrastructure Committee chairman Mohamad Fazli Mohamad Salleh said the WTPs involved are Sultan Iskandar WTP (Johor Baru), Lok Heng WTP (Kota Tinggi), Sungai Gembut WTP (Kota Tinggi), Bukit Batu WTP (Kulai) and Tenglu WTP (Mersing).

He said the state government is constantly monitoring the current situation of all the WTPs which are estimated to affect a million consumers, and that the state government has mitigation measures in place.

"As a precautionary measure, we have prepared to place several pumps for example in Sungai Johor, Sungai Tiram and Tasik Biru Seri Alam as well as a raw water transfer project from Sungai Lukah.

"So we will pump water if the water in the plants decreases because El Nino is expected from May to July, but we hope that Johor will not be affected by this phenomenon,” he said when met at Kumpulan Johor Corporation 2023 group Aidilfitri open house, here today.

He said this when asked to comment if the water of any WTP is expected to reach a critical level following the El Nino phenomenon.

Mohamad Fazli said the state government is also constantly monitoring all 16 dams in Johor, including the smallest dam in Gunung Ledang, Muar with a capacity of 0.39 million cubic metres which can only last 13 days if there is no rain.

On the other hand, Bekok Dam which is the largest can last for 299 days if there is no rain, he added.

Mohamad Fazli said the state government would also consider conducting cloud seeding if necessary.

The National Water Service Commission (SPAN) recently reported that it listed eight states that are easily affected by the El Nino phenomenon that causes dry and extremely hot weather based on the experience of the event in 2015 and 2016.

The states involved are Perlis, Kedah, Perak, Selangor, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang and Johor. — Bernama