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Water Shortages and other water - related woes appear to be increasing in frequency and severity. In the last two decades many parts of the country faces water stress conditions inflicting extensive damage to agriculture production, resulting in low industrial output, and causing major disruption to social and economic life. During the 1977 - 78 period, droughts devastated paddy production in most of the irrigation schemes in Northwest Peninsular Malaysia. In 1982 and 1991, droughts were responsible for the critical drop of water levels in in the state of Kedah, resulting in cancellation of the off - season crop production. in 1991, the state of Melaka faced critical water problems with water levels falling below critical levels, thereby forcing severe water rationing for months in the state. In 1998, the El Nino related drought caused severe water stress in the states of Kedah, Penang and Selangor. the state of Selangor was forced to impose severe water rationing in Kuala Lumpur and Petaling Jaya for many months. In 2002 drought destroyed thousands of hectares of paddy in the state of Perlis. In 2003, with the blessing of the Kedah State government , a Sarawak - based timber company attempted to undertake helicopter logging in the 122,789 hectares of water catchments forest in Ulu Muda Forest Reserves in Kedah. Catchments areas provide water resources to the downstream areas for irrigation, domestic consumption, and manufacturing. The Ulu Muda Forest reserves provides water for the Muda Rice plains, for domestic household in the states of Kedah , Penang and Perlis, and for the manufacturing industries in Penang and Kedah. water from the catchments area supports the Muda Agriculture Development Authority region, which accounts for at least 45 per cent of local rice production and thus , has an impact on the income and livelihood of the rice farmers. If the Ulu Muda forest are logged, " there are increased risk of erosion and sedimentation, which may effect water supply, with greater risks in decline of rice and industrial production, and less availability of water for domestic use. Clearly the logging of Ulu Muda catchments area would have enormous impact on the economic and social life of people and would create a water scare environment in the states. An obvious question: What were the motivations behind the state government decision to log the catchments area : future interest of the state and its people, conservation or private and personal interest? In 2007, the Klang Valley is poised to fear water shortages. In this year, the demand for water and supply capacity will begin to narrow. However in 2008 the state of Selangor and the Federal Capital, Kuala Lumpur would have a water deficit of 118 MLD, caused by demand for water (4,671 MLD) exceeding the supply capacity (4,553 MLD). The demand for water in the Klang Valley rises by six per cent a year. Water demand for water in the Klang Valley rises by six per cent a year. Water demand in the Klang valley is estimated to double to 7,642 MLD in 2020. Syarikat Pengeluaran Air Sungai Selangor (SPLASH), the concessionaire of the Kuala Kubu Baru dam, indicates that the current water supply situation in the state is critical, given that existing treatment plants are already operation at full capacity. But even the dam is just a stop - gap measure as new supply must be pumped in by 2007. Water Shortage problems are not new to the Klang Valley. in 1998, due to the El Nino phenomenon, the country received rain fall that was well below average, exacerbating the existing water shortage in the state. The government was forced to ration water supply to 1.8 million residents in the Klang Valley. Residents received water for only twelve hours on alternate days. The amount of water reservoirs fell to critical levels, increasing the possibility of contamination. Warning of a potential water shortage in the Klang Valley were raised by various quarters. On June 26,1997, almost a year before drought struck, Rozali Ismail, executive Chairman of Puncak Niaga Holdings, which treats and suppliers water for Kuala Lumpur, had this to say: " Based on our assessment, the water shortage problem will be critical next year (1998)... The growth in the water demand , which has exceeded the state's projection, couple with the problem of low pressure and pipe leakages, will give rise to a situation in 1998 where there will not be enough water to be supplied to consumers in the state" There are many factors that result in water shortages: environment degrading, industrial waste, economic activity and pollution of water catchments areas. Further more, massive logging and housing development in the vicinity of catchments areas reduces the capacity of catchments centers to retain rainwater. in the state of Selangor , the Batu 11 Jalan Cheras Water Treatment Plant had to be closed 11 times during the 1998 drought period. This was due to excessive levels of ammonia in the catchment's raw water, suggesting sewage contamination. The Department of the Environment indicates that since the 1980s sewage effluent was the main source or pollution of inland water and poses the greatest health risk and spread of water borne diseases. Contamination of catchments area leads to potential health risk, expensive upgrading of water treatment plants and may result in a drastic reduction of water supply capability as seen during the 1998 drought. An important point to note is that , even if there is high rainfall, catchments areas will not able to secure and retain water if the ecological integrity of the catchments area is compromised. In Malaysia, surface water from rivers and streams constitute about 97 percent of raw water processed for consumption. However , most of our rivers are polluted. There are 76 rivers in Peninsular Malaysia, 22 of which are classified as polluted, another 44 are described as slightly polluted, and the remaining 10 rives are said to be clean. There is an increasing degradation of rivers, particularly those rives which flow through urban and industrial centers. Further more , a water stress condition is a result of unsustainable household or domestic water consumption patterns. In the 1970s, Malaysia consumed less than 200 liters per day (LPD) per capita. In the 1980s, water consumption increased to about 250 LPD. At present, it is estimated to be about 300LPD. A recent study indicates that average water consumption per person in urban centers is about 500 LPD. The United Nations international standard for water use is 200 LPD. Malaysia use treated water for toilets purposes , washing cars, watering garden and cleaning houses. it might be necessary to introduce rainwater harvesting for non - essential activities.
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