Trust Our Tap 2028

Building Trust

Aqua Pura means pure water in Latin. Water is the world’s most precious resource as it gives life to living beings and nature. Globally, water resources are scarce due to pollution and the lack of proper management that reflects their full values. These have contributed to the decline of civilizations and are threatening the viability of communities, cities, and countries today.

We at Air Selangor, are committed to delivering the Best Customer Experience to our consumers through clean and safe potable water. As the largest water operator in the country, Air Selangor serves over 2.6 million customer accounts (≈ 9.1 million consumers) across Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, and Putrajaya with a pipeline network of 30, 422 kilometres.

In 2020, Air Selangor embarked on Trust Our Tap 2028, a long-term holistic initiative to ensure clean and safe potable water helmed by four (4) main pillars:

1. protection of raw water resources,
2. control and monitoring of water quality,
3. increasing the laboratory’s capacity and capability to diagnose, and
4. preservation of treated water quality.

Various policies on strategies and operational plans governing aspects of sustainability, water quality, and pollution supervision have also been developed to govern Trust Our Tap 2028.

A key challenge experienced by Air Selangor is the limited source of potable drinking water from rivers. There are five (5) classes of rivers in Malaysia, and Air Selangor is only permitted to source potable drinking water from rivers categorised as Class I, Class II, and Class III. This limitation of resources conflicts with the rising population dilemma where demand is more than supply.

It is important for Air Selangor to manage and protect the catchment areas and waterways free from pollution risks, and form water security for the State and Nation. Achieving a sustainable balance between supply and demand, and ensuring continuous clean and safe water supply is key to Air Selangor’s brand promise, Joy in Every Drop.

Commitment to Providing Clean and Safe Potable Water

In 2022, Air Selangor achieved Kementerian Kesihatan Malaysia (KKM) distinguished record of 99.85 percent compliance with the Drinking Water Quality Standard (DWQS) and 100 percent compliance with Quality Assurance Programme (QAP). The DWQS was set based on the World Health Organisation (WHO) Guidelines for Drinking Water Quality, and it is also widely used in Singapore, Japan, and Australia.

Real-time Water Quality Monitoring

Technology adoption for real-time water quality monitoring is vital to ensure clean and safe potable water supply, especially when water is supplied through more than 30, 000 kilometres of pipelines.

Air Selangor’s Hybrid Distribution Water Quality Real-Time Analyser (HYDRA) is an online water quality monitoring station that issues alarm signals when anomalies are detected in the water to support water quality restoration.

Cleaning Service Reservoirs & Pipes

Did you know that before potable water is distributed to consumers through pipes, the water will be stored in service reservoirs?

Just like our homes, the service reservoirs and pipes also need cleaning from time to time to ensure water quality preservation. The cleaning activities are carried out on a scheduled basis, involving approximately 1,600 reservoirs.

Air Selangor uses two methods of cleaning:

• Method One: Non-pressurised pipe cleaning
• Method Two: Pressurised cleaning

The cleaning methods are carried out suiting the area.

During the cleaning activity, supply shutdown and pressure changes could affect low water pressure, water quality deterioration, and temporary water disruption. To ensure early notification, the consumers in the affected area will be informed on the current status via the Air Selangor mobile application.

Why does the discharged water from the water filter appear brownish?

While, as consumers, one may have the urge to install a water filter for quality drinking water, we at Air Selangor are confident that our potable water is of superior quality as it meets the National Drinking Water Quality Standard.

Not many consumers know water filters tend to remove good minerals from water during its filtration and oxidation process. This results in brownish sediment appearing during the water filter’s backwash process – fear not, as it’s not from Air Selangor’s potable water.

Closing

Providing clean and safe water to consumers is indeed Air Selangor’s call of duty. We strive to continuously explore various innovative mechanisms to ensure that our potable water can be continuously trusted for consumption.

Published on Malaysiakini dated 31 March 2023: Malaysiakini