SEWAGE SERVICES IN MALAYSIA.

There are mainly two types of sewerage systems/services in Malaysia. The premises' sewerage systems are either connected to a public sewage treatment plant or have an individual septic tank.

IWK is mainly responsible for operating and maintaining the public sewage treatment plants and network of underground sewerage pipelines.

The services are rendered through the company's 18 Unit Offices/Customer Service Centres located throughout the country, except Johor Bahru, Kelantan, Sabah and Sarawak. Customers can also pay their Sewerage Services Bills at these centres.

EARTH + WATER

  From the earliest life forms to life on earth as we know it today, water has been the one essential constant . Covering roughly seventy percent of the earth’s surface, only a mere fraction is available as freshwater and of that, an even smaller proportion is available for human use and we are only just beginning to truly understand the nature of this most precious and limited resource. In addition to its life sustaining role, water is also one of the most destructive forces on earth, carving breath taking gorges and valleys, yet disasters related to water are responsible for large scale loss of life as well. In its different forms water supports ocean life, retains precious atmospheric samples dating back thousands of years, is a muse for writers, artists, and sculptors, as it tenuously supports a human population of six billion and growing.

30 WAYS TO SAVE WATER IN AND AROUND THE HOUSE.

TOILET
1. Use a toilet bowl with smaller flushing capacity (for example 6 liters or less per flush) or place a bottle of water in the tank to reduce water for each flush.
2. Minimize the number of flushes made in a day.
3. Check regularly for leakages: add food colour to the tank and look out if the coloured water spills during or after flushing

SHOWER
4. Take shorter showers or install a low flow showerhead.
5. Place a bucket near the shower to collect excess water during bath and the
water can be used for other purposes.
6. Turn off the shower while lathering soap.

SINK
7. Don’t let the water run while shaving, bushing teeth or washing your face.
The best practice is to collect water in a pail and use it.
8. Repair dripping faucets

GARDEN
9. Water the lawn early in the morning or late evening to avoid evaporation from
heat and wind.
10. Don’t over water the lawn, avoid watering during rainy season.
11. Adjust sprinkler to avoid over watering.  In case of a small garden, usage of hose
is advisable.
12. Regularly check sprinkler setting and timer.
13. Avoid over fertilizing or use a slow release water-soluble form of nitrogen.
14. Choose a water efficient landscape or garden.
15. Keep your grass about 6 cm long because taller grass holds water better.
16. Use broom to clean driveways and sidewalk rather than flushing the rubbish with water.
17. Use watering cans whenever possible especially when watering patio plants.

KITCHEN
18. Avoid running water to wash dishes.  Fill the sink and use the water.
19. Always turn off your taps tightly so that it does not leak.
20. Store a bottle of water in the refrigerator or use ice if you want cold water.
21. Wash your produce in the sink or a container that is partially filled with water
instead of running water.
22. Fill the washing machine full each time when you need to wash clothes.  Each
time the washing machine runs, it uses the same amount of water.

GARAGE
23. Use a bucket when washing the car rather than the hose.
24. Prevent any type of oil from spilling as it takes a lot of water and soap  to wash off the floor.

OTHER TIPS
25. Be well informed and participate at public meetings on water issues in your area.
26. Check all water related pipelines consistently to avoid interior leakages.
27. Immediately report broken pipes/infrastructures to the relevant authorities.
28. Encourage water conservation activities to be taught in school.
29. Support the government’s call to conserve and save water.
30. Use water harvested from rain in garage and garden and if possible even for toilet flushing.

WATER SUPPLY AND SANITATION IN MALAYSIA..

Water supply and sanitation in Malaysia is characterized by numerous achievements, as well as some challenges. Universal access to water supply at affordable tariffs is a substantial achievement. The government has also shown a commitment to make the sector more efficient, to create a sustainable funding mechanism and to improve the customer orientation of service providers through sector reforms enacted in 2006. The reform creates a modern institutional structure for the water sector, including an autonomous regulatory agency, an asset holding company and commercialized state water companies that have to reach certain key performance indicators that will be monitored by the regulatory agency. The government has also stated its intention not to embark on new private sector contracts for water provision, after a bout of such contracts during the 1990s showed mixed results.
A number of challenges remain, only some of which have been addressed by the reforms. First, tariffs are low, thus making cost recovery impossible at current levels so that the sector continues to depend on government subsidies. Second, water losses as well as per capita water use remain high despite efforts at water demand management. Third, a large-scale water transfer project from the Pahang River to Kuala Lumpur is controversial because of its negative social and environmental impacts. Fourth, the development of sewerage and wastewater treatment has lagged behind the development of water infrastructure. For example, much of the collected wastewater is not yet being treated. The sanitation sub-sector has been excluded in the 2006 reforms of the water supply sub-sector.

WATER RESOURCES AND SUPPLY IN MALAYSIA..

All water sources are dependent on rainfall. Of the total average annual rainfall of about 320bcm for
Peninsular Malaysia some 47% run off as surface flow and is available for use. The total annual demand is
estimated to reach about 14bcm by 2020 which equates to 12% of the total water availability. However,
water supply management and development in Malaysia is not centralised, but is managed on a state-by-state
basis; and to cater for the differences in supply and demand inter-state water transfer programmes have been
implemented. To meet future requirements the National Water Resources Study (2000-2050), recommended
47 new dams and 3 new inter-state water projects among 62 water resource projects, including distribution
systems
Streams or rivers with or without impounding reservoirs contribute about 99% of the raw water for water
supply in Malaysia with the remaining 1% of raw water coming from groundwater. Raw water is extracted at
the intake points along the riverbanks. Dams are constructed along rivers to create reservoirs and water is
drawn from these for water treatment plants throughout the country. The Department of Environment (DOE)
monitors the river basins to determine the water quality in relation to major pollution sources, while the
Ministry of Health (MOH) is responsible for monitoring the raw water quality in the reservoirs at the intake
points of the treatment plants. State Water Authorities or private companies then supply piped drinking water
from the treatment plants to the population.
In rural areas not connected to a treated water supply drinking water is obtained from rivers, ground and rain
water. Clean water from these sources is supplied via gravity feed systems, sanitary wells with or without
house connections, and by the collection of rainwater. Although limited in comparison to surface waters
groundwater still makes a significant contribution in terms of yield and availability, and will be an important
source in meeting future water demands for the public supply.
By the year 2000, 98% of the urban population in Malaysia were served through reticulated systems from
water treatment plants using all or some of the conventional treatment processes of aeration, coagulation and
flocculation, sedimentation, filtration and chlorination. However, the effectiveness of some smaller treatment
plants where only chlorination was used, are now under threat because of development.
By the same year 93.4% of the rural population also had access to safe drinking water, and in areas where the supply was not through treated piped water systems nearly a quarter were supplied with safe water by the MOH under their Rural Environmental Sanitation Programme where systems have been funded in part by
community participation, although in recent years this has been less successful. In areas nearer to towns the
MOH also funds the connection of homes to treated water supplies.
In rural areas potential water sources are identified from areas that have traditionally been known for good
water quality. After identification of such a source the water quality is tested against current standards, and if
found to be suitable is allowed to be used as a drinking water source by the community, however users are
still advised to boil the water before consumption.

ANIMALS AND WATER ...

Water is the most important nutrient in animal feeding and animal health. It is the most abundant ingredient of the animal body in all phases of growth and development. A calf's body contains 75 to 80% water at birth and about 55 to 65% water at maturity. Of all farm animals, lactating dairy cows require the greatest amount of water in proportion to their size because water constitutes 86 to 88% of the milk they yield.

Sources of water include that obtained from the ground or surface, water in the feed supply and metabolic water obtained from the oxidation of fat and protein in the body. Water intake usually refers to free-drinking water plus that available in the feed.

THE IMPORTANCE OF DRINKING WATER..

What exactly is the importance of drinking water in the grand scheme of things? When we think about our bodily health, we normally think of exercise and diet. These are important factors, but what may be the most important factor to our health of both mind and body, however, is the amount and quality of water we drink.
Remember you have about 5 quarts of blood and about 50 to 80 quarts of water, you must watch the water you put into your system if you value a VIBRANT HEALTHY BODY. Water is so essential to our body that it's amazing we sometimes overlook its importance.

Did you know that the human body is made up of 70% to 80% water? The brain is made of 75% water and is home to some important glands that have a direct influence on the organs of the body? Muscles 75%, heart 75%, bones 22%, kidneys 83%, lungs 86%, eyes 95%, and your blood 82%. Considering that every drop of blood and water passes through the thyroid gland approximately every 15 minutes of your life, you can imagine the build up of toxins if the water you drink is not of the highest and purest quality. It is essential for the liver and kidneys to have adequate pure water to flush out the toxins that accumulate there.
When you are considering the effects and importance of drinking water, you should be thinking about the big picture. It is absolutely essential for our digestive system--it could not digest food without plenty of water. Ever had a difficult bowel movement or even a painful one? Chances are it was because of a lack of water. We have water flowing all throughout our bodies, so you can imagine that there are many benefits of drinking water daily.
You may be asking yourself now, how much water to drink? The average person should drink about 2-3 quarts of high quality pure water a day. It also depends on your body size, how hot or cold your climate is, humidity, altitude and how much exercise you do. One guide is to take your weight and divide it by half and that will tell you how many ounces to drink. For example a 200lb person should drink 100 ounces.
If you finish a meal and still feel hungry even though you seem to have had enough to eat, it's probably because you are dehydrated. Drink a glass of water and you will be amazed at how quickly your hunger goes away.

There are endless benefits to drinking enough water. If you drink eight, 8oz glasses of pure water per day, you will be lowering your risk of colon cancer by 45%; most health challenges of the body can be traced back to the colon. As you can tell, pure water is an amazing substance. The importance of drinking water is enormous.
So how can you get the best drinking water? You will want to be careful about the water that comes out of your tap. Although city water districts do a very good job of making sure the tap water is safe to drink when it leaves their facility, studies have shown that our public water sources can be anywhere from mildly polluted to very polluted. This is because of the chemicals and drugs that are dumped into our water sources and miles of pipes the water has to run through. America’s water pipe infrastructure is now very old which is evident by the number of water pipe bursts you hear about in the news. If you are concerned about drinking water for health, then you should look into home water filters or even better distilled water. This is the healthiest choice.
There are so many health benefits to drinking pure water that it is truly amazing, most people only concentrate on the need to satisfy their thirst. Pure water is also essential for relieving stress and tension in the brain. It has also been proven to help reduce anxiety. As a matter of fact, if you are prone to anxiety attacks, a great solution is to drink a few glasses of clean pure water. Water also sharpens our mental functions. This means that it's important to drink plenty of water before big tests, interviews, or any other event that will require you to be at the top of your game.
Find out more about the importance of drinking water and great healthy living tips to sharpen mental function and improve your life.