WATER TARIFF ADJUSTMENT AVOIDS EXTRACTION OF UNDERGROUND WATER BY KELANTAN PEOPLE

By Mohd Noor Iqram Rosli

KOTA BHARU, 18 Jan (Bernama) --A transparent and fair water supply tariff adjustment can help reduce the cost of some people in Kelantan who have invested to extract underground water for their domestic use.

Association of Water and Energy Research Malaysia (AWER) president S. Piarapakaran said if the method of extracting underground water is widely carried out in the state, it will cause many problems such as lowering of the groundwater level, soil sedimentation and deforestation.

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These problems can reduce the availability of raw water and worsen the flood situation top an extent that they could destroy the water supply infrastructure, he added.

He said AWER had long requested the National Water Services Commission (SPAN) to implement water tariff adjustments by using a transparent and fair mechanism to avoid inefficient costs being passed on to users.

"The current water supply situation in Kelantan is only 73.9 per cent compared to other states in the peninsula and Labuan which are over 90 per cent. Kelantan is one of the last states to restructure the water industry and the lack of capital injection has lasted too long causing the water supply problem to become worse.

"If the quality and service of water supply improves in the long term, the people of Kelantan can reduce the expenses invested in extracting underground water," he said when contacted by Bernama today.

Piarapakaran said the water supply tariff adjustment also aims to further increase financial resources to help Air Kelantan Sdn Bhd (AKSB) improve its services so that the people in the state can enjoy a continuous supply of treated water.

"After the adjustment of the water tariff, AKSB needs to ensure that the quality and service of water supply improves. It is the state government's responsibility to inform the people of the improvements made.

“If the people of Kelantan doubt the quality and service of water supply received, they can immediately complain to SPAN or AKSB," he said.

Yesterday, SPAN announced that the water tariff adjustment for domestic users in the Peninsula and the Federal Territory of Labuan will take effect on February 1, involving an average increase of 22 cents per cubic metre.

The water tariff adjustment is implemented under the Tariff Setting Mechanism (TSM) where the tariff structure and components are standardised for states in the peninsula and Labuan, with to be reviewed every three years to ensure consistency in the determination of payments.

Meanwhile, Senior Fellow at the Centre for Environmental Sustainability and Water Security, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) Prof Zulkifli Yusop said the Kelantan government needs to reduce its dependence on the federal government in providing basic facilities given the country's current financial situation.

"In this regard, users need to realise that they need to appreciate and pay the cost for good service. At the same time, groundwater resources need to be planned and managed more efficiently to ensure resource sufficiency for the long term," he added.

There are 276,171 AKSB user accounts, including  8,235 domestic accounts.

-- BERNAMA