SHAH ALAM: The Selangor state government today reiterated its assurance to the public that raw water obtained from alternative sources, particularly in several former mining pools in Bestari Jaya, was safe to be used.
Infrastructure, Public Amenities, Agriculture Modernisation and Agro-based Industry committee chairman Zaidy Abdul Talib revealed that the Selangor Water Management Authority (LUAS) has been pumping raw water up to 700 million litres per day (MLD) from pools in Bestari Jaya since Feb 2 into Sg Selangor to ensure enough water for consumption.
He stressed that the state government was vigilant in ensuring the water that was pumped into the river complied with the Health Ministry's raw water standards.
"The monitoring process of the water quality was done in three stages, which is monitoring of the raw water at the pools, in the river and the treated water, which is reviewed by LUAS, the Selangor Health Department and the water operators at the different stages," he said in a statement today.
He added that the sampling of the water from the pools were carried out by the state health department and analysed by the Malaysia Chemistry Department.
Zaidy said he had taken the initiative to clarify the safety of the water as several parties had raised doubts on the effect of such alternative water sources on the health of the people.
Based on the analysis of the water samples up to Jan 20, he maintained that the raw water quality's parameters were all within the recommended levels approved by the Health Ministry in its National Guideline for Drinking Water Quality.
"The latest sampling was done on Feb 18 and this is carried out weekly.
"The results of the sampling analysis have been uploaded on LUAS' website since June 14 last year for public's reference," he said.
He added that the release of water at the Sg Selangor dam was strictly controlled via daily approval by LUAS.
The state also reviews the release of water three times a day to optimise the flow of the water from the river and the former mining pools.
"The combination of reducing the release of water from the dam and pumping in water from the alternative water sources can fulfil the needs of the water treatment plants and extend the lifespan of the dams," he said.