TH U R5DAY MARCH L4, 2OIII
Atienza to file bill on rainwater catchment facilities
By MaricelV. Cruz
AN OPPOSITION lawmaker on Wednesdav said he will fite a Atienza said it takes yban to address our growing population's
bill that makes it mandatory for all building owners, botl pri-
vate and govemment, as well as households around the country
to provide their own rainwat€r catchment facilities. .
"We now need to take seriously the threat of a waterless
Philippines or face the dire consequences. We wamed about this
four years ago and it is now happening," senior deputy minoriSr
leader and Buhay Party-list Rep. Lito Atienza said.
"We wgent$ need a law requiring all building owners, both
govemment and private, as w€ll as households to put up their
own rainwater catchment facilities, so that all the water gathered
in these fiei*iti such as tix wxhing clothes,
washing cdq d flushing ioile{s and watering plants.
We don't need freshwater for these. Now that we are onie again
facing the real danger of losing our vr'ater supply, we should aad
we must start saving water arld prcmote tle more prudent use
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of gne of out counby's most valuable resources. We havc to be
very deliberate and conscious about watei use,'lAtienza said.
needs for fteshwat€r. This cannot be done ovemighl he added
The partyJist lawmaker also said he finds it ironic that even
though the country is an archipelago surrounded by bodies of
water, we continue to experience intermittent periods of dwin-
dling water supply especially during the summer months.
"Allthese rainwater is actually a blessing that unfornrnately
jLs-r goe*s io waste wirhout being"collected and utilized. We do
not even consider saving it and using it properly. At the same
trme, we have at least lzg billion cubic meters of freshwater
supply not being utilized wisely. Of this, only an estimated 24-
25 bib@fl$ic rmlers.are hcinCrlsedpsryerly every year. And
*le reC Eoes Lo wsbte." Atienza daHsA.
Atienza, who previously served ai Environment secretary,
renewed his waming that freshwater would soon become a very
rare commodity for the world.
-Ab'/