Angat Dam in Bulacan is on the verge of hitting its critical water threshold due to a severe lack of rainfall within its watershed, according to the state weather bureau PAGASA.
During a climate forum on Wednesday, June 24, PAGASA-Hydrometeorological Division weather specialist Jofren Habaluyas reported that the reservoir’s elevation had dropped to 163.5 meters as of 6 a.m. This leaves the dam a mere 3.5 meters away from its critical operating level of 160 meters.
The Norzagaray-based facility, which has a normal high water level of 210 meters, serves as the primary source of domestic water for Metro Manila.
With the water level receding by about half a meter daily, officials are bracing for the worst.
“So we’re expecting na umabot na ito sa critical level na 160 kung saan possible water shortages will occur kasi most of our supply of domestic water still comes from Angat,” Habaluyas added.
This is not the first time the dam has faced such scarcity; water levels previously plunged past the 160-meter mark during the El Niño years of 2010 and 2019.
PAGASA confirmed on June 9 that El Niño conditions have once again emerged in the tropical Pacific, severely undercutting local rainfall.
“This is different from our projected scenario last month na kung saan inaasahan sana natin na 280 millimeters na rainfall for June. ‘Yung observed reservoir rainfall only averaged 127 millimeters from June 1 to June 22. So parang hindi pa umabot sa 50% nung forecast rainfall value. Kaya naman po patuloy ‘yung pagbaba ng Angat,” he said.
Relief may be on the horizon by mid-July, as weather forecasters anticipate a boost in rainfall brought by the southwest monsoon, or habagat.
“Ganoon pa man, ‘yung recovery period is still by the second or third week of July and we are expecting Angat’s water level to continuously rise until the end of the year,” Habaluyas said.
Should the watershed receive an estimated 493.2 millimeters of rain alongside a steady dam allocation of 48 cubic meters per second, PAGASA estimates the reservoir could climb to 176.33 meters by July 31.
While this indicates a positive trend, Habaluyas pointed out that it remains inadequate compared to normal conditions.
“So mas mataas ito sa current elevation niya na 163.99. Below rule curve elevation pa rin na 3.67 meters and 33 meters away from the normal high water level,” he said.
Furthermore, the weather bureau warned that the climate phenomenon’s dry spell could stretch well into the coming year, urging the public to remain cautious about water consumption.
“So still, ‘yung caution pa rin natin kahit mag-recover yung Angat is for the first quarter of the following year kasi magli-linger ‘yung effects ng El Niño leading to the dry season of 2027. Kaya hopefully, at least umabot man lang sa normal high water level Angat by Dec. 31,” he said.