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Singapore Public Utilities Board’s waterworks in Johor stop operations after ammonia contamination

SINGAPORE, April 4 — PUB’s waterworks in Johor stopped treatment operations this afternoon due to high ammonia levels found in the Johor River, Singapore’s national water agency said in a statement today.

The stoppage of treatment operations at the Johor River Waterworks disrupted its water supply to Singapore and some parts of Johor.

Water supply in Singapore is not affected, PUB said, as it has stepped up production at the desalination plants and local waterworks to meet demand.

“PUB is monitoring the raw water quality in Johor River closely and will resume abstraction and treatment of raw water when water quality is suitable,” the water agency said.

PUB’s statement comes following reports in the Malaysian media that high levels of ammonia pollution in Sungai Sayong — one of the creeks that supply raw water to the Johor River — had disrupted water supply to about 17,000 households in Kulai.

Johor International Trade, Investment and Utility Committee chairman Jimmy Puah Wee Tse said a reservoir at a bio-composite centre next to an oil palm refinery in Sedenak burst, causing the ammonia-contaminated water to flow into Sungai Sayong, the Star reported.

The Bukit Batu assemblyman said the incident occurred at around 7am on Wednesday.

Two water treatment plants had to be shut down that evening as they could not process the raw water due to high levels of ammonia.

This morning, another two water treatment plants had to be shut down.

Puah said the authorities have taken action against the oil palm refinery, cancelling its raw water abstraction licence and serving a compound notice following the incident.

Puah said that Kulai was the only affected area, adding that the water supply would be restored fully by about 10pm today.

Source : MalayMail