Boracay gets new wastewater treatment plant

Another wastewater treatment facility has been put up in this island resort.

The Manoc-manoc Sewage Treatment Plant can accommodate 5 million liters of used water daily, the Boracay Island Water Company (BIWC) said.

It will complement the Balabag Sewage Treatment Plant, which takes in 6.5 million liters of used water daily.

The P570-million new plant is “dedicated to treating mixtures of domestic raw sewage and/or septic tank effluent from connected households and establishments in Barangay Manoc-manoc,” Fernando Zobel de Ayala, chairman of the board of the Manila Water Company, said at the launch on Monday.

The BIWC was created in 2009 through a partnership between Manila Water and the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA).

With an activated sludge system, the Manoc-manoc plant ensures that the treated wastewater is safe for marine life and suitable for recreational activities before it is discharged into the sea, said the BIWC.

The BIWC said the new facility’s output complies with the Class SB effluent standard of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

Ayala said the Manoc-manoc plant is expected to increase the BIWC’s used water service coverage to 61 percent.

Its capacity will be further expanded to accommodate 3.5 million liters more by 2017, raising the BIWC’s used water service coverage to 75 percent, according to information released to the press.

Also present at the launch were Aklan governor Florencio Miraflores, Department of Tourism regional director Helen Catalbas, TIEZA’s Guiller Asido, and BIWC chief operating officer and general manager Joseph Michael Santos./