SINGAPORE — National water agency PUB has agreed to Johor authorities’ request for Singapore to supply more potable water to the state in light of the dry weather afflicting the state’s water supply, it said in a statement today (Aug 20).

Since last Friday, PUB has drawn an additional 5 to 6 million gallons per day of potable water from the Johor River Waterworks it operates at the Kota Tinggi district to supply to Johor Bahru. Water-rationing was implemented in parts of the city starting last Sunday and lasting till Sept 15, after the dry weather severely affected water levels in the state’s Sungei Layang dam.

The request comes after the Johor authorities sought late last year to impose higher land-assessment tax on the Johor River Waterworks, Foreign Affairs Minister K Shanmugam said in Parliament earlier this week.

Mr Shanmugam, who is also Law Minister, said PUB is not obliged to pay the higher tax amount, which is twice that of the next-highest rate in the state, because PUB’s operations in Johor are governed by the 1962 Water Agreement. Under the agreement, which expires in 2061, Singapore buys raw water from Malaysia and, in turn, Malaysia buys treated water from the Republic.

Over the years, PUB has supplied, at Johor state’s request, about 16 million gallons of potable water per day to it. PUB said the current arrangement of supplying about 22 million gallons of potable water per day to Johor is temporary and subject to regular review.

It added: “This will not affect the water supply in Singapore. There has been some rain in Singapore, and PUB has increased its production of NEWater and desalinated water to meet local demand, allowing water levels in local reservoirs to remain healthy.”

Environment and Water Resources Vivian Balakrishnan visited the Linggiu Reservoir in Johor earlier this month, after water levels there had dipped to historic lows because of the dry weather. The reservoir improves the yield of water from the Johor River, from which Johor and Singapore draw water. Water from the reservoir is released into the river to prevent saltwater from the sea to intrude into the river, as salty water cannot be treated by the water plant further downstream.

The facility extracts and treats up to 250 million gallons of water a day from the river, in accordance with terms under the 1962 Water Agreement. The volume is equivalent to 60 per cent of Singapore’s daily water needs.

In its statement today, PUB said the water level at the Linggiu Reservoir has dipped to 54.18 per cent, from 54.5 per cent two weeks ago.

Correction: An earlier version of this article reported that the water level at Linggiu Reservoir had risen from two weeks previously. This is incorrect. The water level fell to 54.18 per cent, from 54.5 per cent. We are sorry for the error.