PAM Jaya Admits 44 Percent Of Water Pipes In Jakarta Leaking

ILLUSTRATION/BETWEEN

JAKARTA - The President Director of PT PAM Jaya admitted that the leakage of clean water service pipes in Jakarta reached 44 percent. The leak is in the piping connection that flows to each customer.

"From the production to the volume of the bill, 44 percent leaked in early 2021. But previously it leaked 58 percent. So there are improvements, decreases, although (the leakage rate) remains high," Bambang told reporters, Thursday, November 4.

To find out pipe leaks, PAM Jaya observes the input and output of water volume in each piping cluster. From there, PAM made improvements.

"We have to repair it, it must be dismantled and repaired. What we see is a burst, which we can fix immediately," said Bambang.

He gave an example of an area that experienced a pipe leak. Most of the leaks were in North Jakarta. The pressure of the infrastructure burden in North Jakarta affects the strength of the pipeline.

According to Bambang, of the 44 percent of pipes that leak, 80 percent of them are caused by physical leaks. Meanwhile, the remaining 20 percent are commercial leaks or intentional leaks.

"The physical leakage is from the piping (problem). Commercial leaks are from the meter and illegal taping (theft of water)," he explained.

However, Bambang admitted that PAM Jaya did not place the repair of leaking pipes as a priority activity for this business entity owned by the DKI Provincial Government in 2022.

Next year, PAM Jaya projects that the main program is to increase the supply of clean water. Followed by building a network. Then, decrease the number of nonrevenue water (NRW) or leakage. Then, public education.

"That's the step. If you make a new pipe network, it means repeating from the beginning. If you replace the stored water (pipes), it must be brought to a place that has not been accessed," he concluded.