DSWD demos water filtration kits to push Marcos’ bucket wisdom

Government officials try out filtered water after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. tells Filipinos to buy pails that they can use with water filtration kits

Communities vulnerable to El Niño may soon receive water filtration kits from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD). 

Social Welfare Secretary Rex Gatchalian conducted on Wednesday, October 14, a live demonstration of how to use the kits, which may come in handy during water shortages.

For good measure, Gatchalian and Presidential Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro drank the filtered water in front of reporters.

The DSWD chief drank the filtered water thrice, even adding more soil to the water being filtered. Castro drank it twice.

Their live demo comes on the heels of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s advice to buy pails to collect rainwater.

Marcos said on Sunday, October 11: “Bumili na kayo ng balde para ‘pag umulan, makolekta na ninyo lahat (Buy pails so when it rains, you can collect rainwater).”

“We’ll give you the filter. We’ll teach you how to do everything so you won’t get sick and you can do the water filtration properly. And it will be healthy even for little children,” added the President in a mix of English and Filipino.

The “balde” advice drew criticism, with groups such as the August Twenty-One Movement saying it is not a real solution to the looming crisis.

On Tuesday, October 13, Castro fired back at what she called “obstructionists,” saying that the President’s remarks were serious and part of the government’s efforts to mitigate the effects of El Niño.

And, on Wednesday, Castro told Palace journalists during Gatchalian’s demo: “Alam ‘nyo, you should try [it] kasi ‘pag dumating talaga na kailangan ‘nyo ‘yan…‘di ba?” (You know, you should try drinking the filtered water because the time may come that you might need it, right?)

Reporters eventually tried the filtered water for themselves.

Gatchalian said the DSWD will start to distribute the portable water filtration kits next week. 

First in line will be local government units that have declared a state of calamity due to El Niño, as well as high-density areas in Metro Manila experiencing low water pressure.

“We’ll ask them to bring their pails and we’ll install the kits. It’s easy to install. Do they need a special pail? No,” the social welfare chief said in Filipino.

Actually, since 2024, the DSWD has been deploying buckets or jerry cans with built-in water filtration technology to disaster-hit areas without access to potable water.

Citing no actual figures, Gatchalian said many jerry cans are still in the DSWD’s stockpiles, and the agency could procure more through its quick response funds.

With the El Niño phenomenon, the DSWD is also looking into distributing the water filtration kits to families and teach them how to install the technology themselves.

All they need to do is drill a hole near the bottom of the bucket, screw on the connector, hose, and filter. All of the materials needed, including a cleaning plunger and instruction materials, are part of the DSWD kit. The filter can last for a minimum of five years with proper care and maintenance.

Each water filtration kit costs around $35 (about P2,200), according to the international non-government organization Waves for Water, which manufactured the filters for the DSWD.

For this year’s annual procurement plan, the DSWD allocated P26.9 million for 10,500 family water filtration kits sourced through its quick response funds in the 2026 national budget.

Gatchalian said the Department of Health has certified the water filtration kit as a “medical device” and vouched for the safety of the treated water. According to the DSWD, the water filtration system has 0.1 micron filters that can remove cholera, salmonella, E. Coli, and coliform bacteria.

Water sources could be deep wells, springs, rainwater, and water being rationed, according to Gatchalian.

He said the DSWD will also roll out community water depots, which are big rain catchers with a filter system and multiple faucets. The DSWD chief said these are more scalable, especially in communities with open areas and possibly, even schools.

Gatchalian said other DSWD initiatives for El Niño include the cash-for-work program for small water impounding projects and community gardens. They are also deploying air-to-water or atmospheric water machines to far-flung areas.

Castro said other government measures to boost water supply in Metro Manila are cloud seeding, better dam management, building water treatment plants, using water tankers, and activating 61 decommissioned deep wells.

All sound good, but for poor and large Filipino households that may need to store liters and liters of water, heeding the President’s advice will require them to buy multiple buckets, if not drums, to survive what is anticipated to be terribly warm and dry months ahead. – Rappler.com