can you imagine? i am drinking wastewater!

despite my obvious love-hate relationship with work, i remain thankful when i find reasons to be happy about my job. as i await revisions to the report i just submitted, i am set for another "educational" tour, yes a field trip! this time, to the NEWater plant.

i have renewed interest at work (at least for this field trip na ako lang mag-isa as usual hehe) because for a time, when i was an RA in upm, I worked with water quality testing and i also enjoyed plant visits, although then, the setting was different (environmental and occupational health sa UP tapos public education naman ng science dito sa NIE). somehow, i feel that something is right no matter how i serendipitously ended up in science education research when my education and training is actually in health science [and no matter how kunsumido we get at times because of our boss (see related entry hehe)], something finally feels right. it's like picking up some pebbles on a long journey for no reason and being pleasantly surprised to find that further on, you had to use those pebbles and you picked them up without knowing you will need them in the future.

anyway, going back to the freakish title: look mama! im drinking wastewater! :) for the most part, it's true, because part of the water supply of this tiny nation comes from the NEWater plant (which i will visit on thursday).

although the NEWater plant is not exactly a tourist attraction, field visits outside school is always a welcome break from the long hours i spend just sitting and clicking away on the computer. i did minor research online just so i know what to expect. and i had some interesting findings.

singapore, being a very small nation geographically, has admittedly limited resources. people know that their beaches are man made, kang kong is grown not on watery ponds with soil (to match our local kangkungan) but through hydroponics (growing plants in water without soil). their highest peak wouldn't be so much of a challenge for those who love trekking and hiking either. sa totoo lang, madaming maipagmamalaki ang Pilipino when it comes to our natural resources (lalo na human resources hehe).

one of the limited resources (not only for small nations like sg) is water. and NEWater is one of their solutions in responding to the limited supply. singapore has overcome water shortages despite its limited natural resources. there are four national taps which supply water for the whole of singapore. they have the local catchment for rainwater, imported water from Malaysia, desalinated water from seawater, and the NEWater--which is essentially recycled waste water (reclaimed water).

again, with my limited understanding, if we have the la mesa, ipo and angat dams raw water system as the major water source for metro manila, singapore has these 4 national taps. we have the natural aquifers and an expanse of land to collect rainfall, singapore does not have that luxury. that's why, apart from the local catchment, they need to import water, desalinate seawater, and recycle wastewater!

perhaps i can no longer interest you with the nitty-gritty of the process but i can say the water is clean (although we still boil our drinking water from the tap), wala pa namang ulat ng water-related disease outbreak. but can you imagine, drinking water that comes from wastewater? it's not really that gross when you find out the purification process it undergoes (microfiltration, reverse osmosis, UV disinfection, etc.). they mix the treated NEWater with the other sources. the water for drinking undergoes further conventional treatment that satisfies drinking water standards and the rest may be used directly for industrial purposes. using NEWater in industries also saves potable water from being used in industrial activities.

so there, i feel like i'm having a Batibot entry hehe. pagbigyan ninyo na lang ah, ganito talaga kapag naghahanap ng rason to stay happy with one's work. kasi mayamaya lang as i write this, Apu will again ruin my day.