PENANG is making one last attempt to get its citizens to stop wasting water by increasing the water conservation surcharge from 48 sen to RM1, failing which it may have to raise the tariff.
 
Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the state has applied to the National Water Services Commission (SPAN) to double the surcharge.
 
This, he said, was Penang’s final attempt to make consumers in the state, where the domestic water tariff at 32 sen per 1,000 litres is the lowest in Malaysia, stop wasting water.
 
“Once we get the approval, we will impose the raised surcharge. We cannot go on like this,” he told reporters in Penang today.
 
Almost a quarter of the 504,400 domestic consumers in Penang use over 35,000 litres of water a month. These users are subjected to the surcharge for every 1,000 litres they overuse.
 
Domestic consumers in Penang use an average 290 litres of water a day, far above the national average of 210 litres. Penangites had been advised to cut down the daily water consumption to at least 250 litres per person.
 
Lim, who is chairman of the state’s water operator Penang Water Supply Corporation (PBAPP), said Penang had long been criticised by the federal government and non-governmental organisations for its high water usage.
 
He said Penang was often able to fight off criticisms, but in this matter, he could do nothing but admit it was a problem the state had been unable to address, despite having introduced hikes to the surcharge.
 
“It is true. We cannot deny it. All this time, we had been reluctant to increase the water tariff, which NGOs have been suggesting, because we wanted to try to educate and persuade people to conserve water.
 
“It seems we have had little success so far. It is difficult to answer the criticisms, as we have failed in our campaign of nine years.
 
“I cannot answer, but I appeal to the NGOs to give us one last chance to try to educate consumers. Let us take the middle road by increasing the surcharge, not the tariff,” he said.
 
PBAPP chief executive officer Jaseni Maidinsa said the surcharge had been able to encourage consumers to cut down wastage, but only temporarily because water was still cheap.
 
“Every time we introduce it, we see a drop. In 2015, the daily consumption was 291 litres. Last year, it went down to 286 litres.
 
“But because the tariff is still low, people go back to normal (their usual habit),” he said, stressing that consumers must cut down their water use by at least 10%.

Jaseni said the water operator was also spending a lot on water subsidies enjoyed by domestic consumers.
 
“We now spend RM90 million on subsidies. In 2008, we spent about RM60 million,” he said.
 
Penang has three dams ­– one each in Air Itam and Teluk Bahang on the island, and one in central Seberang Prai on the mainland. The Mengkuang dam in Bukit Mertajam is under expansion and will be 27 times larger than the Air Itam dam.
 
The state also relies on Sungai Muda, which flows from Kedah, for 80% of its raw water supply.
 
Because of this, Jaseni said the federal government must stop logging activities in Ulu Muda in Kedah to preserve the water catchment area that was crucial for Kedah, Penang and Perlis, which were home to four million people. 
 
“The catchment area supplies water to three dams and Sungai Muda, which is important for irrigation and farming activities,” he said, urging for action to be taken to prepare for dry seasons and prevent water shortages.
 
“The three northern states have a combined GDP (gross domestic product) of RM105 billion. 
 
“We are endangering their economies if the logging continues,” said Jaseni. – April 23, 2017.