• Raw water resource use and management;
• Potable water treatment technology and finished water quality;
• Wastewater management and water quality impacts;
• Sludge management;
• Hazardous materials management and emergency response;
• Employee health and safety;
• Land acquisition and resettlement
• Affordability and willingness to pay;
• Community development;
• Employee retrenchment;
• Community relations;
• Corporate citizenship; and
• Environment and Social Management Systems.

• the unavailability of appropriate open land for STP sites;
• the congestion in Metro Manila roads which will hinder massive sewer network layout;
• the high capital, operations and maintenance costs; and
• the question of the customers’ capacity and willingness to pay for sewerage services.

• An improved septage collection and disposal system, which includes the provision of septage desludging trucks and construction of two centralized septage treatment plants within the concession area; The septage collected before the treatment plants are completed (i.e., until 2004) is being temporarily disposed at a sea dumping site designated by the Philippine Coast Guard, and in accordance with the 1972 London Convention on Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Waste and Other Matter. The 1994 EIA for the project was approved by the DENR. Ongoing World Bank and Philippine government environmental monitoring of the 2,300 meter deep site in the South China Sea located 110 kilometers from Metro Manila confirm impacts are insignificant, and that the project is complying with the Bank’s environmental and social safeguard policies.
• Rehabilitation of the Makati sewerage system and of the Magallanes STP; and
• Construction of 40 compact STPs for individual housing developments in Quezon City currently served by communal septic tanks.

• More septic tanks will be regularly and properly desludged, helping to ensure that performance and effluent quality will improve;
• More septage in the MWCI area will be treated to DENR discharge standards; and
• More domestic sewage in the sewered areas of the concession will be treated to DENR descharge standards.

The Company recently completed its biggest TPSB project to date, the Manggahan Floodway Water Supply project, which entailed laying over 18,000 kilometers of pipeline to provide water to over 200,000 illegal squatters along the east and west banks of the floodway.

Cultural Heritage
Currently MWCI is working with the local community and other private and public sector entities to rehabilitate and restore the historic Balara area, as part of the Balara Community Development Plan. The area has a amphitheatre, botanical garden, windmill park, pool, children’s play area and the rehabilitation will include a reforestation project with jogging trails, a forest and plant nursery area and museum. It is an ambitious project which the government hopes will give poorer residents another leisure activity within the city.

Labour Issues
Manila Water has reduced the number of employees, from 2165 to 1530 over the first five years of the Concession, through a successful voluntary retirement program. The program included a consultative process in which employees were given the choice of continuing employment or accepting compensation to retire. As part of the early retirement package, Manila Water instigated a ‘Soft Landing Program’ whereby employees under voluntary separation were encouraged to form co-operative companies to provide third party leakage repairs. An Employee Stock Option Plan was granted to all employees who were absorbed upon privatization. Union leaders and affected employees have been satisfied with the compensation they received, and there are no outstanding disputes or unresolved issues. MWCI has conducted several training programs in customer service, technical areas, and management and as a result has been able to reduce its expatriate managers significantly through this internal capacity building.

Community Relations
Prior to starting projects that may disrupt traffic or inconvenience residents, the company broadcasts “water advisories” on its website and over the radio. Local managers typically also go door to door in the affected neighborhood to alert residents of the proposed work. Where appropriate, traffic disruption is minimized with the use of steel plates to cover work-in-progress and by concentrating on one traffic lane at a time. MWCI maintains a 24-hour call center for reporting of service difficulties and complaints.

Corporate Citizenship
Another initiative of MWCI, the Sagip-Buhay or Life Saving programme, promotes employee volunteerism, and includes blood drives, outreach and educational book and toy distribution, medical missions and life saving training for employees. This programme has fostered good community relations and a strong sense of volunteerism, social responsibility and commitment within MWCI’s employees.

Environmental and Social Management Systems
MWCI’s management structure, philosophy and procedures allow it to successfully manage and enhance environmental and social performance. The Company has an awareness of the issues and the willingness to address them as demonstrated by assigning appropriate resources and motivating staff. Staff have adequate capabilities to ensure that issues and solutions are understood and proper procedures followed. For the most part, appropriate organizational structure and procedures are in place as evidenced by their success in meeting current environmental obligations, as well as implementation of the TPSB program.