Sabah finding ways to protect and create water sources

KOTA KINABALU: The current dry spell has motivated Sabah into finding ways to safeguard its water sources, including gazetting water catchment areas and building coastal reservoirs.

Deputy Chief Minister I Datuk Seri Dr Jeffrey Kitingan (pic) said they need to protect water sources to ensure sufficient supply in a potentially hotter future.

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He said the present weather has seen water levels in many rivers dropping drastically, some by almost 50%.

“Two treatment plants have been shut down due to water reservoirs drying up.

“This is not due to water management but climate change, as well as the hot and dry weather,” said Kitingan after chairing a Water Resources Council meeting yesterday.

He said they would also propose to the state government for the gazetting of water catchment areas or reservoirs in areas such as Penampang, Sandakan, Papar, Tawau, Kudat, Semporna, Tuaran and Tambunan.

“This is to protect these areas so they cannot be disturbed even if these are state land and located outside forest reserves or national parks,” he said.

Kitingan, who is also state Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Industries Minister, said some water catchments would have farms and titled lands around them and that these would be gazetted as conservation areas.

“This is for the long term as we must look after our water sources,” he said.

Another suggestion, he said, is to build coastal reservoirs to collect excess water from high rainfall, adding that this would be handy especially in times of drought.

“We also discussed ways to find water sources such as through tube wells and also transferring of water from areas abundant with the supply to places with less water.

“It is important to enhance public awareness that we must look after the environment and surroundings, including rivers.

“Each village should have a committee to oversee the protection and conservation of their water sources,” said Kitingan.