KUALA LUMPUR: Lembaga Urus Air Selangor (Luas) has identified more than 60 ponds and lakes in the state that have the potential to be used as additional water resources should a drought hit the Klang Valley in 2025 as forecasted.
Its director Hasrolnizam Shaari said of the total, 21 ponds had been approved by the state government to be widened and deepened to increase their capacity.
“In the first stage, we have updated the status of more than 60 ponds and lakes, including the status of the land and their usability.
“We also have received approval from the Selangor government for 21 ponds to be prepared for widening and deepening, with the construction to be carried out by the Selangor government’s subsidiary, Kumpulan Semesta Sdn Bhd,” he said when appearing as a guest on Bernama TV’s Koresponden Bernama.
Hasrolnizam was on the show yesterday to talk about Selangor’s preparations to face any prolonged dry season.
He said Luas had also built other infrastructure to ensure that water from the ponds could be channelled to the water treatment plants by means of water pumps before water is drained into the river.
Hasrolnizam added that Luas had also developed an application which could record the amount of water available in real-time.
Recently, he was reported to have said that water supply in the Klang Valley would be sufficient for eight months if a drought were to hit the region in 2025.
“Currently, the entire population in the Klang Valley, including Putrajaya and Kuala Lumpur, covering 6.5 million residents, receives treated water supply from Selangor, with a total daily consumption of 500 million litres.