PAAB Ensures Sustainable Water Services Industry

The final article in this two-part report focuses on PAAB’s water supply sustainability strategies to prepare for supply crises, particularly in view of climate change and population growth.

Have we ever stopped to think about the losses borne by the authorities and consumers when we see water gushing from underground following a burst pipe by the roadside?

Perhaps not.

But Pengurusan Aset Air Berhad (PAAB) Chairman Datuk Seri Ir Jaseni Maidinsa offers a glimpse into the reality of the “actual losses” behind the torrent of treated water simply going to waste, known in the industry as Non-Revenue Water (NRW).

 “Every litre of water that is lost comes at a cost, in terms of water treatment and distribution costs. When water is lost before reaching consumers, the water operators incur losses in revenue,” he said in an interview with Bernama here recently.

Sharing his views and concerns about the resilience of the country’s water supply services in light of the current situation, the leader of the Minister of Finance Incorporated-owned company said the time had come for service operators to prepare for any potential water crisis in the future.  

CLIMATE CHANGE, POPULATION GROWTH, ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION

 Highlighting climate change, population growth that is increasing demand for water, and the threat of pollution, Jaseni stressed the importance of efficient water management across the entire supply chain, encompassing catchment areas, water resources, dams, treatment plants and distribution systems.

He said if all these aspects were not properly managed, consumers would ultimately bear the consequences, including having to pay higher tariffs while facing the risk of supply disruptions and poorer water quality.

The Bukit Chupak Water Treatment Plant (LRA) exemplifies the Federal Government's commitment—realised through PAAB in close collaboration with the Kelantan State Government via Air Kelantan Sdn Bhd (AKSB)—to ensuring residents have access to a more stable, high-quality, and sustainable clean water supply.

“Looking at the changes in weather patterns and population growth, operators need to be prepared to ensure sufficient raw water supplies. When river water is insufficient in the future, we will have to find alternative sources.

“The same applies to pollution. That is why there are regulations and laws prohibiting human activities, including deforestation, industrial development and other high-risk activities, from being carried out near raw water sources, including catchment areas, rivers and dams.

“In some developed states, where supply disruptions frequently occur due to pollution, consumers bear the consequences when the water treatment plant had to be shut down,” he said.

 He added that contaminated raw water also required higher treatment costs, which were currently borne entirely by service operators.

In this regard, he viewed water supply sustainability as an effort requiring several approaches to be implemented simultaneously, including reducing the impact of NRW, exploring the potential for water treatment waste reuse, increasing raw water storage capacity and ensuring sufficient treated water reserve margins to meet future challenges.

SAVING EVERY DROP OF TREATED WATER

On the NRW rate, Jaseni said the national average stood at 34.4 per cent in 2025 for Peninsular Malaysia, Federal Territory Labuan according to SPAN. The target is to reduce it to 20 per cent by 2050.

“Nearly 90 per cent of NRW is caused by leaks from ageing Asbestos Cement (A.C) pipes and inaccurate water meters,” he said.

PAAB Chairman Datuk Seri Ir Jaseni Maidinsa (fifth from right) poses for a photo against the backdrop of Malaysia's first pipe-conveyor water treatment residue transport system—which is the longest of its kind for water treatment residue at 1,918 meters—and the longest shaftless screw conveyor system (46 meters) at Air Selangor’s Bukit Enggang Balancing Pond in Mahkota Cheras.

To address the problem, PETRA has provided RM1.8 billion to replace critical pipes to reduce NRW and PAAB as the implementing agent.

 The media had previously reported that the country was losing around RM2.68 billion annually due to NRW, with the figure expected to rise to RM4 billion by 2030 if the issue was not addressed.

Under PAAB’s plan, a total of 38,887 kilometres (km) of asbestos cement (AC) pipes are targeted for phased replacement by 2050. To achieve this target, pipe replacement work needs to be carried out at a rate of about 1,900 km annually.

“In addition, water meters that are more than 10 years old need to be replaced by 2040 to ensure accurate water consumption readings.

“This proves that addressing NRW requires a planned asset replacement programme based on network risk levels, rather than simply reacting after a pipe bursts,” he stressed.

To strengthen NRW management holistically, PAAB has outlined the need for 24 hour call centres and repair teams, in addition to deploying active leak detection (ALC) systems and water theft prevention systems.

These efforts are further supported by the integration of telemetry and SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) systems for real-time asset monitoring.

“Telemetry sensors collect data on water levels, quality and pressure from remote locations. The data is then processed by SCADA, which acts as a control centre to operate pumps and valves automatically from a remote location,” he said.

He said such a digital approach would enable operators to take preventive action earlier, as the more water that is saved, the less need there would be for additional water treatment, thereby reducing pressure on raw water resources and the country’s energy costs.

FROM TREATMENT PLANT WASTE TO CIRCULAR ECONOMY

 Elaborating further, Jaseni said sustainability in the water industry was also gaining new momentum through the management of water treatment plant (WTP) residue.

For the record, water treatment plants nationwide produce about 16.18 billion litres of treated water a day. However, an estimated five per cent of this, or around 800 million litres a day, is discharged as backwash water containing residue sediment.

Alam Aliran Kualiti (M) Sdn Bhd (AAK) has become the first company in Malaysia to process water treatment plant residue—classified as scheduled waste (SW204)—into raw material for cement brick production, thereby introducing a circular economy-based solution. AAK developed this technology through a collaboration with the Penang Water Supply Corporation (PBAPP) to address the issue of water treatment plant residue management.

This wastewater comprises about 95 per cent to 98 per cent liquid and 2 per cent to 5 per cent solids. Without proper treatment, the discharge of this sludge-laden water not only pollutes rivers and contravenes Department of Environment (DOE) regulations, but also forces operators to bear high costs to acquire new landfill sites.

To address the issue, PAAB has recommended that state water service operators adopt dewatering technology and circular economy practices currently implemented by Perbadanan Bekalan Air Pulau Pinang (PBAPP).

“This pioneering model was developed through a collaboration between PBAPP and Alam Aliran Kualiti (AAK) Sdn Bhd at the Sungai Dua Water Treatment Plant, which processes about one billion litres of water a day.

 “Through the Sungai Dua Dewatering Plant (SDDP), backwash water is processed using a belt press system to separate the liquid from the residue solids.

“This technology has successfully recovered about nine million litres of wastewater a day for reuse at the plant, enough to meet the daily needs of 10,000 to 12,000 households.

“The resulting 450 tonnes of residue, which was previously discharged into rivers, is now compressed into ‘residue cake’ and sent to the AAK plant in Bukit Minyak to be processed into Eco-green cement bricks,” he said, adding that the plant could produce up to 65,000 bricks a day.

The success of the innovation also earned the facility recognition in the Malaysia Book of Records (MBOR) under the category ‘Largest Belt Press System Dewatering Plant’.

According to him, scientific tests had also confirmed that the bricks produced from the residue were safe for use, opening up new potential for the construction sector.

Following this, the Ministry of Energy Transition and Water Transformation (PETRA) will propose in Parliament this October that treatment plant residue be removed from the Scheduled Waste list, with the legislative amendments expected to come into force by March 2027.

“Through this legislative reform, regulatory authority over the disposal of treatment plant waste will be transferred from the Department of Environment to the National Water Services Commission (SPAN).

 “This will provide legal assurance for residue to be recycled on a wider commercial scale, including for land reclamation, the cement industry, road paving and heat resistant clay bricks,” he explained.

Taking Selangor as an example, he said if six major Air Selangor water treatment plants adopted the sustainable water treatment residual system, the state could potentially save around 300 million litres of water a day from being discharged into rivers, while processing some 2,000 metric tons of residue daily into economically valuable products.  

180-DAY WATER STORAGE STRATEGY

Climate change is also making the management of the country’s water resources increasingly challenging, with rainfall and drought periods becoming harder to predict. Heavy rain over a short period does not necessarily guarantee long-term water supplies, while prolonged dry spells risk affecting water flow in major rivers and reservoir levels.

Jaseni said water supply security depended not only on exploring new sources, but also on the ability to store raw water in dams and reservoirs.

PAAB recommends expanding the capacity of the country's dams to enable them to hold a 180-day or six-month-supply.

According to him, under previous reservoir designs based on British standards, a dam in Malaysia could store enough water for only 100 days. However, current climate change threats require larger storage capacities.

“We recommend enlarging dams so they can hold 180 days, or six months, of water reserves.

 “Now we can see that when there is heavy rain, dams cannot contain all the water and it has to be released. Otherwise, it can affect the structural integrity of the dam. When you release the water, it is a loss to supply water for the dry season.

“The experience in Penang through the Mengkuang Dam Expansion Project has demonstrated the effectiveness of this strategy.

“The dam’s raw water storage capacity, which previously could last only 100 days, was successfully upgraded from 22 billion litres to 86.4 billion litres, representing a high-impact increase of almost four times the original capacity.

“This increase has also provided significantly greater raw water storage space, while serving as a strategic drought reserve when needed,” he explained.

Apart from increasing the capacity of existing dams, another strategic approach is Off-River Storage, which involves capturing and storing excess water in reservoirs next to the river for use during dry periods, thereby preventing raw water from simply flowing away during heavy rainfall.

At the same time, water supply security needs to be supported through water diversification, including water reuse for the industrial sector, the use of treated wastewater for suitable non-potable purposes, rainwater harvesting and seawater desalination technology.

However, he said desalination required very high operating costs and electricity consumption, making it more suitable as a last resort when all surface water is exhausted.

The main approach, he said, should remain focused on ensuring that existing water resources are protected, managed and utilised as efficiently as possible.

BUILDING A TREATED WATER RESERVE BUFFER

 Not only that, every state should maintain a 15 per cent treated water reserve to ensure that the water supply system has a buffer when demand increases during the dry seasons and during festivals like Chinese New Year or Hari Raya.

“SPAN data shows that Malaysia’s treated water reserve margin stood at 14.9 per cent in 2024 before declining to 14.4 per cent in 2025.

“However, the situation varies significantly between states, with Kedah at 0 per cent, Kelantan recording a margin of 2.1 per cent, Perlis 3.4 per cent and Melaka 5.3 per cent, while some states, such as Penang, recorded a margin as high as 30.2 per cent.

“This difference demonstrates the need for supply capacity to be planned based on current conditions and projected demand in each state,” he said.

In this regard, PAAB has urged states recording reserve margins below 15 per cent to take measures such as constructing new water treatment plants, increasing the capacity of existing plants and rehabilitating underperforming assets.

However, Jaseni said increasing supply capacity was not the only solution, as water demand could also be managed through changes in consumer habits.

 “Education on water conservation also needs to be strengthened from school age so that prudent water use becomes part of our culture.

“This is important because Malaysians’ domestic water consumption (l/c/d) remains high, averaging around 223 litres per capita per day, compared with Singapore, which recorded domestic consumption of 142 l/c/d in 2024,” he said. The target is to achieve the United Nations 140 l/c/d by 2050.

He added that efforts to conserve water could also be supported through the use of more efficient equipment, such as low-flow taps, push taps or timed taps, particularly at high-consumption premises such as hotels, universities, schools and offices.

 “Remember, Every Drop Counts and every litre we save can actually help reduce pressure on raw water resources, treatment plants and the entire supply network,” he advised.