Camille Naredo

Members of the media view the facilities of the Manila Water Upper Wawa Dam project during a guided tour of the facility located in San Rafael, Montalban, Rizal, on May 21, 2026. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News

Members of the media view the facilities of the Manila Water Upper Wawa Dam project during a guided tour of the facility located in San Rafael, Montalban, Rizal, on May 21, 2026. The Upper Wawa Dam is the Philippines’ largest privately led bulk water supply project, dedicated to Manila Water’s East Zone operations, comprising Pasig, Taguig, and Makati, as well as Mandaluyong, San Juan, Marikina, and parts of Quezon City. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News

Article (news)

WATER- UPPER WAWA DAM

Jervis Manahan

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/178029983803120260521-upper-wawa-dam-manila-water-JC3268.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960" alt="Members of the media view the facilities of the Manila Water Upper Wawa Dam project during a guided tour of the facility located in San Rafael, Montalban, Rizal, on May 21, 2026. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Members of the media view the facilities of the Manila Water Upper Wawa Dam project during a guided tour of the facility located in San Rafael, Montalban, Rizal, on May 21, 2026. <em>Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News</em></span></span></span></div><p>MANILA— National Irrigation Administrator Eduardo Guillen on Monday said the agency is ready for the high probability of a strong El Niño this year.</p><p>Guillen says their projects are climate-resilient, despite lower levels of water being recorded in some dams in the country.</p><p>&quot;Ang NIA naman ay proactive tayo dito sa climate change. In fact, ang mga projects natin ay nakatuon po doon sa tinatawag na climate change resiliency. So, may mga mitigation lalong-lalo na iyong mga adaptation projects po natin ngayon na ginagawa sa NIA, so naka-ready naman po tayo,&quot; said Guillen.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/business/2026/5/29/public-urged-to-save-water-as-angat-dam-falls-below-operating-level-amid-drought-1716">READ: Public urged to save water as Angat Dam falls below operating level amid drought</a></div><p>The administrator says they are on top of the situation and are continuously monitoring the water level of the PH dams.</p><p>&quot;Ang maganda sa mga high dams natin, nakikita natin iyong present volume niya ano po. So nalalaman po natin kung ilan talaga iyong kaya natin—iyong programmed area na papatubigan natin,&quot; he said.</p><p>However, they also appealed to farmers to plant high-value crops that do not require a lot of water, which includes corn and mung bean.</p><p>&quot;Nakikipagtulungan po tayo sa ibang agencies gaya ng DA at mga LGU,&quot; he said.</p><p>The National Water Resources Board has decided to suspend water allocation for irrigation, a move usually done to reserve the water mainly for domestic household use.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/weather-traffic/2026/5/26/drought-hits-metro-manila-25-provinces-in-may-pagasa-1510">READ: Drought hits Metro Manila, 25 provinces in May – PAGASA</a></div><p>&quot;Dito lang naman po iyan sa Angat &#x27;no, dahil bumababa po iyong tubig ng Angat.  Itong Angat Dam po kasi hindi naman po sa NIA iyan ano. Again, ito ay sa NAPOCOR at dito po natin kinukuha iyong atin—Kung hindi ako nagkakamali ano 90% ng inuming tubig dito sa Metro Manila ay dito po galing, so siyempre priority po muna ang inuming tubig,&quot; he said.</p><p>&quot;But sa long-term solution po ng NIA, sa kasalukuyan po ay under construction po iyong ating dam diyan, iyong Bayabas Dam,&quot; he added.</p><p>&quot;Kasi apat po iyong ilog na bumabagsak po sa Bulacan, ma’am, ito iyong Norzagaray na kung nasaan iyong Angat, iyong Ipo, Bayabas and Maniktik. So, itong Bayabas po nilalagyan na po natin ng malaking dam na ang laman po ay nasa 54 million cubic meters.&quot;</p><p>NIA has also set up solar irrigation projects to help farmers cope with the effects of El Nino.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO:</strong></div><div><strong><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="960" height="540" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/uZ39RTMSPsI?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span></strong></div>

<p>National Irrigation Administrator Eduardo Guillen on Monday said the agency is ready for the high probability of a strong El Niño this year.</p>

National Irrigation Administrator Eduardo Guillen on Monday said the agency is ready for the high probability of a strong El Niño this year.

PH dams prepared for El Niño, says NIA

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PH dams prepared for El Niño, says NIA

Jervis Manahan,

ABS-CBN News

Published June 01, 2026 03:46 PM PHT

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