While the statement sounds trite and overused, it is, basically, the kind of attitude that a water service provider is asking from its customers in an effort to, once and for all, rid our country’s waters of years of pollution.
Through its ongoing campaign called “Toka-Toka Para sa Malinis na Ilog (Doing Your Share for Cleaner Rivers),” Manila Water is educating Filipinos, particularly Metro Manila residents in their coverage area, on the importance of “used water” treatment and the vital role of sewage treatment plants in maintaining the cleanliness of natural water sources. (“Toka” roughly translates to “share” in Filipino.)
“Very few people appreciate that there’s a second mandate for Manila Water. All they know is we provide water. But after you use the water, you don’t think about where it goes. Sixty percent of water pollution is caused by untreated, domestic waste water,” says Jeric Sevilla Jr., Manila Water’s officer in charge of corporate strategic affairs group.
For homes and establishments connected to sewer lines, the used water goes to sewage treatment plants which then cleans the water before allowing it to flow back to rivers, Sevilla explains. The treatment ensures that the used water won’t pollute natural water bodies nor harm other organisms, such as the fish living in them.
The problem, however, is that not even a third of the people living in Metro Manila use sewer lines, and are much less aware of the importance of sewage treatment plants.
“Only 23 percent of the water-service connections in Metro Manila have sewer lines. So the question is, what happens to the other 77 percent? One, they are dependent on septic tanks. For those in informal settlements, [sewer lines and septic tanks] are totally absent. It goes straight to the waterways,” says Sevilla.
To address this, Manila Water advocacy and research department head Fernando Busuego III says the company has “gone grassroots” by partnering with local government units under its coverage area, Metro Manila’s east zone. In the past four years, Manila Water has been arranging talks, as well as cleanups of waterways, to promote its campaign.
The firm uses the term “used water” instead of the usual “waste water” precisely because it wants people to “better appreciate where it goes and what we do with it,” says Sevilla.
“Our toka is [also] the infrastructure,” says Busuego. Manila Water also invites homeowners to take advantage of its services, and have their septic tanks desludged or, better yet, connect their homes to a sewer line so that the used water will be treated in one of the company’s 40 sewage treatment plants.
Busuego admits, though, that the campaign has been a “slow burn,” despite Manila Water’s efforts to educate, influence and engage stakeholders. “I guess it’s because legislature focuses more on solid waste and air pollution, which, of course, are very important issues. But we want to highlight that used water treatment is equally important.”
However, Busuego adds that since the 2016 elections ended, LGUs have expressed more interest in Manila Water’s Toka-Toka project and became more cooperative.
“Addressing the used water treatment issue should be done holistically. The informal settlers, as well as legislature [on the environment] should be handled by the local government. And everyone needs to pick up his or her own trash,” says Sevilla. “The ultimate goal is to have cleaner rivers.”