Selangor Folk to Face Water Woes and Firm Feels the Heat to Meet Rising Demand

I have read an article from the Star newspaper title ‘Selangor folk to face water woes and firm feels the heat to meet rising demand’ by Loshana K. Shagar and Shaun Ho. The conflicts over natural resources will grow in times. It is an interesting headline over the title regarding the natural resources that are scarce. Economists view things from a unique perspective. They view the world through the lens of scarcity.
Scarcity means a situation in which the amount of something available is insufficient to satisfy the desire for it. It limits options and demands choices. Sources can be categorized into four. There are labor, capital, land or natural resources and entrepreneurship. Land or natural resources are the preexisting “gifts of nature” in a country. This includes land, as well as useful materials found under it or on it, such as crude oil, iron, coal and petroleum.

In the article, the main argument is about water demand is increasing due to a hot weather. In that case, it causes Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor (SYABAS) to increase the supply of water to the maximum level of 466 million litres per day in Sg Langat treatment plant and 688 million litres per day in the Sg Semenyih treatment plant. According to SYABAS corporate affairs executive director Abdul Halem Mat Som, the problem was not a shortage of supply but an increase in demand. However, the issue should not be problems as SYABAS has to be ready of any consequences especially the weather. We are aware of Malaysia’s weather that sometimes it can reach up maximum to 33 degree celsius based on World Weather Information Service. They can refer to a forecast of climate change from time to time. In terms of climate change, Malaysia is not the only country that is having an extremely hot weather. There is other country that is having a higher degree than us. For example, United Arab Emirates, Somalia and even United States of America is suffering from drought. It is not affecting the water supply but also on agriculture terms and food supply.

In my economic point of view, SYABAS should invest and focus on research and development for the future mankind. Water management has to be systematic, futuristic and economistic. For example, in Singapore, they runs the water reclamation programme, which uses advanced membrane technologies involving microfiltration, reverse osmosis and ultraviolet disinfection, to recycle used water, has been particularly successful. With the water industry projected to be worth about US$400 billion by 2015, the Singapore government has identified it as a new growth sector for the country’s economy. As such, about S$330 million will be invested in water R&D over the next five years to develop Singapore into a hub for water technologies. Mr Khoo Teng Chye, the Chief Executive of PUB, attributed Singapore’s success to several factors. He said, “We believe that innovation is important and have always placed emphasis on R&D and investing in technology”. In order to achieve such succession, SYABAS should be innovative and dare to take the risk. Bringing in more water will only alleviate the problem in the short term but lifestyle change is the long-term solution.

This scarcity will lead to wise decision making in supplying clean water to every state in Malaysia especially Selangor. Of course consumers do not want any shortage of water in 5 years times and rising in price of water. In a 2008 study conducted with the Energy, Green Technology and Water Ministry, Malaysians were found to be the highest water users in the Selangor. “We use over 200 litres per person each day and 70% of those surveyed admitted they were not likely to change their lifestyle”. In my opinion, in order for us to conserve and preserve the clean water, both the firms and consumers have to play an important role. Water is a part of Mother Nature given to us and we have to appreciate it before it is gone. There are few steps that can be taken in our daily life in order to save water. Cut down shower, off the tap water while brushing the teeth and save 25 gallons a month. Clean water is a finite natural resource. Saving the water should be something practical in our life. Besides that, taking care of our river by not throwing trash or garbage in it also important. River can be a source of clean water in need of the hard times. But unfortunately, rivers in Malaysia are not clean enough and most of it clogged by unwanted trash.

Economically, the increase in demand will eventually increase the price of water since water is a natural resource that is scarce. All consumers are affected to the price change. The law of demand states, other things remaining the same, the higher the price of a good, the smaller is quantity demanded. Assume that the good is water. By this time when consumers receive a higher bill of water, they start to realize and reduce the wastage of water. Abdul Halem Mat Som also added that in the last ten years, the increasing of developments in the district causes the demand for water supply to increase. In 10 years times, the size of the population will increase. Demand also depends on the size and the age structure of the population. The bigger the population, the higher the demand for water. As for instance, increasing the amount of citizens will increase the amount of residential area; hence the demand for water supply is also higher. For the benefit of our future generation, we should start to save water from today.

As for the conclusion, Malaysia has to work on improving their water management system. Improving the system will make efficient supply of water even in 100 years times. Water is a basic thing of life and it is use every single day in our life. Organizations and individuals have to work on it together for the sake of our water. May this water issue won’t become a problem in the future.