Angat water level continues to drop due to lack of rain--Pagasa

The water level in Angat Dam in Norzagaray, Bulacan dropped to 185.65 meters on Tuesday, May 7, 2024, close it its minimum operating level of 180 meters. PHOTOS BY ISMAEL DE JUAN

MANILA, Philippines — Angat Dam'S water level continued to drop despite the onset of the rainy season, but the state weather bureau on Friday was optimistic that it would recover in the coming weeks.

Administrator Nathaniel Servando of the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) told The Manila Times via Viber that Angat, the main source of water supply for Metro Manila and adjoining provinces for irrigation, remained below its normal high water level (NHWL) of 210 meters.

As of June 20, there was no decrease recorded due to rain from thunderstorms over the last 24 hours, Servando said.

"But the 176.62 meters reservoir water level (RWL) was still way below its NHWL or its rule curve elevation (RCE) of 182.47 meters," he added. the Pagasa chief said.

The agency defines RCE as the minimum reservoir elevation that dam operators must maintain to ensure water availability for irrigation, power generation and domestic use.

"We could notice the low water level in our dams especially Angat due to the less rain fall within the basin or catchment area although relatively slower compared to the previous weeks prior to the declaration of onset of the rainy season," Servando said.

One big factor in the dams' low water level was the "weak" southwest monsoon (habagat) due to the absence of tropical cyclones inside the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) late last month and early this June, he said.

"But in the coming weeks, we expect the dam elevation to gradually recover," he added.

Pagasa said that normally, starting July of every year, water elevations of major dams normalize as higher volume of rainfall is expected from tropical cyclones occurring more often until the last quarter of the year.