New dam for Papar to supply water to KK until 2050

KOTA KINABALU: A second dam will be built in Papar district near here to ensure sufficient water supply for this state capital and its vicinity until the year 2050.

Outgoing state Infrastructure Development Minister Datuk Raymond Tan said the dam in Kampung Kaiduan, 30km from here, was the centrepiece of the Kota Kinabalu water supply masterplan.

A plan for the construction of a water treatment plant in Lok Kawi and the upgrading of two existing plants was approved by the state Cabinet on April 13, said Tan.

He said the dam and the water treatment plant would cost RM2.8bil.

They would supply an additional 1,200 million litres of water a day for the city, said Tan before handing over his ministerial portfolio to Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Joseph Pairin Kitingan on Wednesday .

Tan said the dam with a capacity of 20 million litres and surface area of 12 sq km would be three times larger than the Kampung Babagon dam in Penampang district.

“Water for the Kampung Kaiduan dam will come from catchment areas on the Crocker Range,” he said, adding that about 100 households would be relocated to make way for the project.

Tan said that other components of the masterplan, including the upgrading of the Telibong and Papar water treatment plants at a cost of RM240mil, would boost the water supply by 120 million litres a day.