The following diagram was posted by BU family member Colonel Buggy with the following note:
Not all of St Joseph people are affected by this chronic water shortage . I have yet to see a BWA water tanker in Cattlewash, with the local gentry lugging buckets, pails and poes to collect water, or filling up from one of those plastic stand tanks. This diagram is my interpretation as to why Cattlewash has been spared the indignity of going back to the stand pipe.
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The following note was posted to Facebook, one feels the pain in the words.
Dear Minister
i recognize that youre not responsible for water management in this country.
Notwithstanding I write to you because I know you to be efficient and humane and stimble honest and humble enough to listen to the legitimate concerns of ALL Barbadians.I also trust that, unlike what others may be likely to do, you will not brush aside my comments as critical of the Government nor a frivolous ploy by someone who may be of a different political persuasion.
I assume the role of MP for St Joseph tonight. I am not vain or silly to suggest Member of Parliament Indeed not, but mine is a role more in tune with what I think a MP should be…a MOUTHPIECE OF THE PEOPLEThere is a shortage of water on the island due to a plethora of reasons ranging from old inefficient mains to low rainfall
FINE
However we in Chimborazo, Lammings, Airy Hill, Parks Road, Mellowes Hill,Newton Crescent among others have been without potable water at the tap for over two weeks.
There has been no show of care or interest by those who have been charged with the management of this critical resource other than the occasional perfunctory pubic service announcement speaking of regret.
Theirs can in no way measure up to the regret of waterless communities who have been forced to convert their wc’s into modern day pit toilets. bathing in buckets etc .
The failure to communicate is regrettable
The placement of Community Water Stations, as I call them, is laudable but for the fact that they are often empty and even at full capacity inadequate to satisfy the minimal needs of large districts .Districts with children and the elderly whose personal hygiene is paramount in their caretaking.
You may soon be battling with some epidemic or the other because people cannot sanitize themselves or surroundings adequately.
Sometimes the water from the tanker is rationed and we never know when it is going to arrive.
IS THIS THE PICTURE WE WANT TO PAINT AMIDST THE TUMULT OF CELEBRATING 50 years of independence ?
Surely this situation is untenable and cannot be allowed to meander until the people become extreme in their desperation.
St Joseph people have never been complainers but we are now at the point where the proverbial well has run dry, dry of patience tolerance and i daresay confidence that anyone is genuinely interested in what happens to us.
PLEASE encourage your colleagues to put themselves in our shoe as the rich can speak comfortably of poverty because it is not their experience
Please entreat the Minister The PM and everybody else to work to solve our problem soon. It is so shameful
We also run the risk in this society where tolerance is at a minimum and rage vexation and anger are given added currency where the scene at water tank or truck become chaotic . Human beings however civil will do drastic things to procure th basics
I am well known for satire but I have sat in ire for quite a while and now its time for us all to take action towards bringing relief to the people and a solution to this horrible situation.
please ignore the typos consider the substance
hopefully some answers will be forthcoming following your gentlemanly intervention.
And while the people in the Northern Parishes are crying out daily for water, there is a dam in the heart of the Scotland District , near Farmers in St Thomas, holding hundreds of thousands of gallons of water,to be used for the irrigation of a nearby golf course.
Seven springs in the area were re-directed to supply this damn. And all along I thought that all Springs and Water wells were controlled by the BWA.
Perhaps Government could look at the temporary requisition of a section of this dam to supplement the hard hit residents of the North.
But do not hold your breath.
http://i.imgur.com/GlUxjlR.jpg?1
And why should the Minister of Water Recources bother his head about the people of St Joseph.
There are at least Four Government Ministers residing in the parish of St Philip. The said Minister of Water Resources and Agriculture, the Attorney-General, the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Transport and Works. And I am certain that quite a few others reside in Christ Church.
Over in Groves, St Philip just “above” Six -Roads, a number of water wells have been sunk there. The press has quoted someone in authority,cannot remember whom, as saying that these wells will ensure that the communities of Christ Church and St Phillip have a reliable supply of water.
It also ensures that a nearby very popular restaurant always have a supply of water, and not like the lady in Lammings Housing Area,who owns a restaurant, and is at the mercy of the Vat Truck.
This is worth reposting.
Not only Cattlewash , but look how an upscale community at Andrews Round Hill where the Central Bank Governor and others live.
http://i.imgur.com/bymc2eu.png?1
A mostly white and Indian capitalist class show nothng but disrespect and contempt for the black masses of Barbadians.
A mostly black political class show nothing but disrespect and contempt for the black masses of Barbadians.
You three groups be warned that Barbadians have gone past the stage where they sang for a hymn of praise….The rich man in his castle,the poor man at his gate….that crap has no place in a modern society anywhere in the world let alone a divided society as Barbados has become.Its time for the people to defend and to demand their rights.I keep repeating…..where are the likes of Eric Sealy today?
Gravity, gravity gravity!!!
The higher the elevation the harder it is to deliver water.
Cattlewash is at sea level, Chimborazo is close to Castle Grant at 1104 feet above sea level!!
Go read the 1946 Senn Report or the 1978 Water resources Report in the Public Library if you want to understand what is happening.
The available water has been accessed since 1996!!
Increase the rates and dampen demand.
This will result in an Improvement of the finances of BWA.
This will allow further investment in improving the distribution system.
Simple solution.
Not really related to class, colour or creed, just simple common sense.
…. oh yeah, and get a sensible land use plan.
Ban further house building!!
Yeah, right!!
We could try praying for rain and God’s blessings… you never know
WE have come a long way from being told at primary school that Barbados average rainfall was 60″ and according to the Advocate newspaper back then,potable water usage was published as a public service or was it a requirement,whatever it was the usage averaged 10 – 12 million gallons per day.
Recently I heard a met officer state the average rainfall is 1200 metres less than that quoted in school texts(60″)
Today I heard a VOB radio programmer state that the cloud cover was ‘rather small’ at 7/8 of low cloud.This guy also said the sun ‘should have risen 2 minutes ago”.CBC also have nitwit women posing as weather informers and one in particular continues to say that the sun is “expected” to rise at…JA’s all.Ignorant people make stupid ill informed comment and those women on CBC look like frothy peacocks strutting their ‘stuff’ and the JA at VOB who can’t speak standard English if it would save his life, would do well to ask Dennis Johnson to help him with his pronunciation,and what the terms used in meteorology are meant to convey.Meanwhile,VOB 92.9fm seem to have gone to the dogs.I have a preference for the sanity of Maurice Norville and Dennis Johnson.
Hope I remember the numbers right.
Data back to 1847 shows rainfall averages 40″ in a drought year and 60″ in a good year.
There is a 60 year cycle in that data.
The Senn report in 1946 estimates available water resource is 44 mgd if my memory serves me right.
The admonition was to plan for worst case, ie don’t expect to extract more than 44mgd.
The 1978 Water Resource Study predicted that with the then current consumption patterns available water resources would have been allocated by 1996.
So said, so done.
No rocket science involved, nothing related to class, colour or creed, just plain straightforward common sense.
It is idiotic rubbish to suggest other wise.
The genius monkey politicians and their underlings wanted all form and manner of golf courses in the early 1990’s, what vision, what imagination ….. imagine if they had got their way totally and a few brave souls had not resisted!!
Where there is no vision the people perish!!
Pray, that’s all that can be done …. and for heaven’s sake, seek some knowledge.
John January 2, 2016 at 6:54 PM #
Gravity, gravity gravity!!!
The higher the elevation the harder it is to deliver water.
…………………………………………………………………..
Pumps!Pumps! Pumps !
Check and see how the water from the Newcastle main at Cattlewash is delivered to the holding tank at St Elizabeth Village. There is a great big pump house at the top of the Joes River end of the East Coast Road.
All over the world there are skyscraper buildings ,much higher than any elevation in relatively flat Barbados . Those upper floors are ably supplied with water.
As the saying goes, we need to get with the programme.
@John
My father died a few years ago, having spanned 3 Centuries, the 19th, the 20th and the 21st . One of the questions that he always asked up to the end of his days, is why, with the increase in housing and other industries,that the water works do not see it fit to drill more water wells.
During the reign of Tom Adams , he had suggested a programme to refurbish all of the existing fan mills and pump the water into the system. Thirty something years after we hear from the BWA recently, that efforts are being made to reopen a well at Groves in St George.
@ Gabriel. …Set aside Dennis Johnson, Maurice Norville, Carol Roberts and Ronnie Clarke where announcing is concerned 92.9fm has been taken over by the Dee jay culture, where poor pronunciation and grammatical butchery is the order of the day. ….Margaret and Sam invites you. ….Just listen to any Shop lime add and you’re convinced.
@Colonel Buggy January 2, 2016 at 8:45 PM #
Your father was 100% plus correct…….our major problem recently(50 odd years) has been the inability for water to have rapid access to the aquifier,due to the lack of cleaning of plantation wells and the digging of fresh ones where required.
Colonel Buggy January 2, 2016 at 8:45 PM #
I continue to enjoy your common sense and informative posts–THANKS
Nice to hear now of the wisdom of your late departed dad
Men of his generation could clearly see with both their eyes and their brains
IT IS THE LACK OF SUCH MEN THAT IS THE SCOURGE OF MODERN BARBADOS
Vincent Haynes January 2, 2016 at 9:02 PM #
I remember Andrews Sugar factory had a well and a fan mill .The manager of Andrews Factory was an avid bird shooter,he built a “swamp” behind Andrews Great House and Sweet Bottom,and used to keep it topped up from this well. He ran the water into the gutter on the far side of the road , and it flowed for days into the swamp.
About a month ago I took a close look at the now abandoned sugar factory from the Fisherpond village end, and could see no sigh of that a well was ever in the location which I knew it to be.
There are a few water wells ,in the Mount Wilton area , abandoned over the years,and have now been reclaimed, using the knowledge of those people who have been around when these wells were functioning.
Remind me what the senior politician said about Bajans and their wall houses, electrified homes and running water.
@Gabriel January 2, 2016 at 7:47 PM “the sun ‘should have risen 2 minutes ago”
Let us beat the sun for being late then. After we seem to believe that more licks, more licks is a cure for everything.
I regularly hear broadcasters say “the sun is slated to rise at 6:03 a.m.”
As though the sun is a football match.
or a menu board in a bar.
I think that these broadcasters do not understand what a slate is.
A slate is a smooth surface on which one writes with a slate pencil. Anything written on a slate is designed to be temporary and to be easily be easily erased.
So how can the rising of the sun be “slated”?
How can the sun be described as temporary, and easily erasable?
On December 21st I heard a VOB broadcaster say joyfully that “today is the longest day of the year.”
Not Dennis nor Maurice nor David of course.
GP….these modern leaders only have tunnel vision for self, they see nothing else and would not see those long ago closed wells not even if they fell in one. They do not possess expanding or projecting vision unless millions of paper dollars are attached. Let’s hope the people affected have water going forward so an epidemic is not in the future cards.
Just recently Alvin the chickmunk and all the slithery things in the ministry of health were trying to convince bajans about a nonexistent HPV epidemic because there were kickbacks and bribes to be had……now they are singlehandedly trying to create their own cholera epidemic, the real deal that is known to have wiped out millions when the plague was in existence centuries ago……stupidy when applied in massive doses, knows no bounds……
Except for one or two informative comments on the water crisis /drought which is causing and affecting the island . Many of the comments have rationalize their comments by pitting black against white a cry (of sort) if or when adapted would not resolve the problem of the drought affected island
Notice with somewhat concern that the same instigators led by Mia Mottley have reemerged spouting the same ole political rhetoric with a beat reminiscence of marches and calls for revolt but having no solutions
Steps to solve the St. Joseph water problem start by Minister Estwick firing John Mwaanza or whatever his name is he is out of his depth. Call loud mouth Bizzy Williams to account for the desalinization plant in Brighton that he said would fill the island’s water needs. Estwick the Philippian dug wells in St. Phillip and found 3 million gallons a day of new water now St. Phillip does not have a water problem. Repeat the well digging in the north,duh. Place more desalinization plants around the island start in the north.The Cattlewash whites will find water on their own the large sums they pocket from doing big business with government and the concessions they demand ad naseum put them in a privileged position. Don’t worry about them. Mia as usual exaggerates the problem saying 25% of Barbados cant get water. Two thirds of the population lives in St. Michael, Christ Church and St. James. There in no water scarcity in those densely inhabited parishes. Get to work Estwick.
As usual we allow a serious issue to sink into a political hole. This government has been in office for almost 8 years, it preached it would solve Barbados’ water problems, Unless fixed by the next election many will ask this government some hard questions. Bear in mind Barbadians experienced a hike of 60%.
One more step. Water by the millions of gallons gush into Harrisons Cave daily tap into that source, duh.
We want to see the BWA and other state agencies more aggressively migrate to alternative energy sources.
These are the facts and main reasons for short supply of water to some household in barbados and other countries in the carribbean ,other than having high levels of rain barbados would continue to have drought effects unfortunately which technology alone cannot resolve
Barbados facing drought in 2016
Barbadians, especially in the farming community are being put on alert. News is that Barbados could be facing a drought in the early part of the new year, a direct result of the El Nino conditions currently affecting the Caribbean and the globe. Senior meteorologist, Clairmont Williams tells CBC News that Barbados is already recording well below the average annual rainfall of 12 hundred millimeters. With less than 48 hours to go in 2015, the island has recorded less than 800 millimetres, which Mr. Williams says is a significant decline in rainfall. As a result, Mr. Williams is advising Barbadians to adopt a conservative approach as far as water usage is concerned.
/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
The mouthings of the leader of the BLP Mia Mottley has always been of suspect to rantings and ravings of political taunts tainted with yardfowl pessimistic ideologies
Nothing surprising to see her front and center planting seeds of discontent in the minds of the public on a critical issue always her mode of apparatus one which has thrown her and the party into disarray and into the long arms of Barbados legal system.
Facts are facts and there are too many instances when the BLP brigade led by one Mottley have foregone the Truth and rely on slanted views and posturing for political advantage .
BU recommend the people of the North invest in water tanks, do not expect the BWA to solve the problem very soon. The BWA has not kept up with growing development whether it is upgrading aging infrastructure or supplementing with new. Let us ignore the paling cocks.
I agree that more often than not, “we (usually) allow a serious issue to sink into a political hole.” However, in response to those who uphold this practice, I am forced to remind them to read page 45 of the DLP’s 2013 election manifesto, as follows:
PILLAR THREE (3): ENVIRONMENTALLY SOUND PRACTICES
THE INFRASTRUCTURAL PROGRAMME
(I) WATER
The quality of public infrastructure in Barbados has been a major factor in the high standard of living enjoyed by Barbadians. Our water infrastructure assets have been aging and are in need of upgrading and extension. Despite the depth and length of the recession the DLP Administration has undertaken major infrastructural developments over the past five years. The Barbados Water Authority is in the process of becoming more efficient in its operations so as to provide the necessary amount of water required for the many development projects for which planning permissions could not previously have been given. These projects would, once approved and implemented, significantly increase economic activity in the country.
THE NEW DLP ADMINISTRATION WILL:
Undertake the West Coast Sewerage project;
Expand water supply in the south and east of the island;
Immediately embark on a renewable energy electricity generation project with the BWA to help reduce operational costs.
When Barbadians remind this DLP administration that after many promises and 8 years they have failed to deliver on their promises to the electorate, we are told by the appointed yard-fowls that we should either “stop complaining and be contented” or “bring solutions,” and some shiite ‘bout Mia Mottley.
BWA warns of protential drought ahead
BARBADOS’ WATER levels are becoming dangerously low and if the situation does not improve, the country will be in drought, said acting general manager of the Barbados Water Authority (BWA), Dr John Mwansa.
“We are in a drought warning situation [and] if we go by predictions from the Caribbean Regional Climate Outlook Forum, where they are saying they anticipate that the rainy season is going to have 50 per cent below normal rainfall . . . we are heading to a prolonged drought,” he said.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
These are the facts told for many months, by the experts , which are i total contrast to piss poor mouthings of the BLP opportunist who are npw holding on to dear life for political advantage but fails and falls short of truthfulness and facts which exposes shortcomings and desperation of the BLP party and its leader in their fight for political power
The usual yard-fowl has focused on Mottley’s, as they wrote, “yardfowl pessimistic ideologies” and “foregoing the Truth and relying on slanted views and posturing for political advantage.”
Ironically, similar terms could be used to describe the DLP’s CANDIDATE for St. Joseph, RANDALL ROUSE as well.
Rouse expressed views SIMILAR to those of Mottley relative to the water situation and also urged Barbadians residing in that parish to join together in PROTEST.
What is the latest with the South Coast Sewage breach?
IDIOT the govt made a promise to repair and improve ! but none of which INCLUDE MAKING RAIN ,SO far the govt have invested heavily in infrastructure and upgrading Water systems which has plagued barbados for years many of which were left unattended by the past BLP govt
Most notably and of interest are the many reports by the Auditor General which focused with high criticism of the wasted funds that the BLP govt could not account as a result of the financial mismanagement at the BWA under their reign. Monies meant to replaced water mains and under ground leakages all critical for sourcing water to household ,
Sir you might think you are off to a good start, but barking up the wrong tree
A big issue with the water network is 60% leaks because of old mains, nothing to do with rain. There is aging infrastructure at the reservoirs AND the huge electricity bill owes monthly to BL&P. If we are going to sensibly discuss the issue let us do it by addressing the issues without a political lens.
Speckled Fowl don/t you read the met,report and the calls on citizens to conserve water ,,as usual your political spin indulges a speckled and blinded one sided approach to infuse persuasive nonsense without giving attention to critical facts The present Facts indicate that low rainfall is a contributing factor to low levels of sourcing water also which means that under perfect conditions of upgrades and maintenance all in good working condition their is a greater risk of sourcing water to household in a timely fashion.
the fact is that govt has not neglected to do the job promise for the repairs and maintenance of the water system however the collision between nature and govt work have become a twofold problem which cannot be ignored and replaced with insipid spin doctrines
“Most notably and of interest are the many reports by the Auditor General which focused with high criticism of the wasted funds that the BLP govt could not account as a result of the financial mismanagement at the BWA under their reign.”
This is now 2016 and these AC asses are still displaying their ignorance.
I suggest you IDIOTS read pages 114 to 122 of the 2014 Auditor General’s Report.
You will discover more “high criticism of the wasted funds that this DLP govt could not account as a result of the financial mismanagement at the BWA has CONTINUED under their reign.”
For example:
Issue: 5.7 Goods ordered from a firm totaling Bds. $462,786.26 were PAID for but NOT DELIVERED. No DUE DILIGENCE was conducted on this firm which is based in the USA. [Page 115: 2014: Auditor General’s Report]
But, as the saying goes: “government is a continuum.”
Please add the wastage on the pipe laying project in Roebuck Street. The BWA has had to excavate the road for a second time knowing the parts were not available the first time around.
Wastage!
Hopefully it will not come to that….but if ever, because of government incompetence, there is an outbreak of cholera due to unhygenic conditions because of the lack of water for people on a daily basis, you can guarantee that everyone will know who to blame, it will make salacious international news to the four corners of the globe……just imagine the possibilities, slithering things.
I tell yuh i tell Yuh the BLP mouth piece Art Yuh could fool some of the people some of the time but not all of the Time ,,keep barking ole mut
The information which you provided or which you believe would be sufficient to obscure and void out the Blp mismanagement of water repairs and maintenance for infrastructure did not just right hit the mark ..As the present govt response stated Yes indeed Orders were made and the Govt was vigilantly pursuing actions of legal recourse on behalf of the taxpayers for recovery of money or for the delivering of goods which were already paid for
A differing approach to what the BLP govt had Not Done during their reign in seeking recovering of lost monies for undelivered products necessary for repairs of the barbados Water system
BTW please note that the BLP up to this day neither received the products or monies refunded to the govt treasury
So bro just get off your high horse as you might well brek yuh neck galloping at brek neck speed to no where
Seasons Greeting to the people of the Scotland District from the Ministry of Water Resources and the Barbados Water Authority.
http://i.imgur.com/odbbvZ1.jpg?1
In and Out January 3, 2016 at 8:12 AM #
One more step. Water by the millions of gallons gush into Harrisons Cave daily tap into that source, duh.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
There are two producing water wells in the Harrisons Cave area , between Clifton Hill and Coles Cave .These wells were in existence when my mother was attending school at Clifton Hill. Shortly after Water Toilets were fitted to Clifton Hill Girls School and Southborough Boys School , traces of the toilet tissues were found in these water wells,which were subsequently abandoned, but still remain the property of the BWA, and until recently were rented to a nearby farmer. With the amount of homes that have gone up since then around this very cavernous area, the problem may have been increased.
Now we are beginning to realise why, with thousands of people living in the St Joseph area who were affected for months in this long going water saga , only 50 people turned out yesterday in a march to register their disgust.
It has turned into a My Party Your Party thing, while the damn politicians are living in areas with an abundance of water. As the song says, “When will we ever learn?”
Climate Change my ar** ! Hours after the politicians walked through St Joseph, the people are saying that the water began to gush in homes like it never did before.
Was this sudden “waterfall” , an Act of God or an Act of Mwansa & Co
Alfred Senn surveyed the 700 plus water wells in Barbados and published a report in 1946.
In those days that meant he went down in most if not all.
In other words, it was done properly.
My Uncle went down in one in Christ Church with him when he was in the area.
Pages 90 to 110 of the report tabulate them.
Variables such as Depth, elevation above sea level, whether they were in production at the time, the kind of pump used, how far into the oceanics they have been dug, whether they have side addits or not etc. etc.
If it is drainage wells that are required, just pull the 1951 map series and check for wells. Not every one may be on it but most will be, the work was done in an era when the old adage “if it is worth doing it is worth doing well” stood.
I would not expect many drainage wells in the area as the coral is old and well cracked and fissured.
The old folks would not have wasted time digging these wells, just relied on God’s handiwork.
Same sort of issue COW faces over at Apes Hill with the geology.
If you have been in Harrison’s Cave you will remember the waterfall.
It is caused by surface water percolating into the limestone and seeking a way down to the sea.
I’ve been through the “Emergency Exit” of Harrisons Cave, it comes out in the gully between Mount Wilton and Sturges and took a group of us 3 hours to complete … some emergency exit!!
I had an invite to go again this week but I refused ….. as I say, I am no longer young and dumb!!
I’ve also walked in the area during heavy rain. I’ve seen water flowing in Russia Gully up to my knees and followed it down through Proute Gully to see where it went.
It disappears in a sink through which I walked with water up to my chin.
The sink is a collapse over a cave.
A professor of geology asked me if I was mad and whether I did not realize I could have been swept into the underlying cave where the water went.
I had figured it out by then but at the time I was young and dumb!!
Digging drainage wells playing we are trying to get the water underground fast is a waste of time and money when God has made a far more efficient means of returning the water to the sea.
That is particularly true in areas where the coral is “old”.
When you see water coming out of the mouths of gullies like at the Hole it just means that you are watching the surplus …. most has already gone underground.
I’ve stood and watched and taken pictures from Tudor Bridge when the entire gully behind the prison has been flooded beyond Banana tree height, lets say 8 feet and above.
You can’t block this flow otherwise there will be a flood.
What water can get underground has already done so and in any case, Belle Pumping Station is upstream!!
You actually don’t want the contamination which can be caused by surface water getting into the aquifer too fast.
Harrison’s Cave was once a source of water as was Baker’s Cave and Coles Cave. There are tunnels dug under the gully to direct water at a time when there were no pumps, no electricity and wind power was not available in the Gully.
The remnants of the filter system can be seen at the head of Jack in the Box gully.
The tunnels are unsafe.
There was also a tunnel in Farmer’s Gully to access the water 50 feet below it. Access shafts remain as evidence but some of the tunnel collapsed in the early 1900’s, late 1800’s. I reckon the tunnel was about 1000 feet, a remarkable achievement.
Unfortunately the coral at the base of the gully is cracked and fissured so digging the tunnel must have been a dangerous undertaking.
I’ve come across other sites where tunnels were dug to access water, one was in the cliff overlooking Codrington College, the other was in Edge Hill.
However as much knowledge as exists on the geology and water resources of Barbados, if it doesn’t rain the water resources are reduced ….. people often refer to this as a drought.
In such situations, all the pumps in the world will do no good.
Pray!!
It works!
Mr. Chairman of BWA
Dear Sir,
At the age of 80 years, you should be man enough, to say enough is enough and tell the people of Barbados, that the 2 reasons for the BWA deterioration, are (!) the fractured relationship between two Ministers that was allowed to decay, due to greed and the failure of a PM, who do not understand the undertakings of a PM for good governs (2) an ever failing BWA Chairman/Board and the lack of management skills,
The BWA wields immense power.
It controls land use!!
An engineer once told me that the only man he ever heard tell Tom Adams to kiss his @$$ was Nicky Sealy, the General Manager.
Tom wanted to develop the Belle area.
Nicky Sealy started quoting the act and told him what he could do.
Tom backed down.
Nicky Sealy understood his role and understood the Act.
I could see how a corrupt board could undermine the functioning of the Authority.
@ David January 3, 2016 at 10:32 AM #
“Please add the wastage on the pipe laying project in Roebuck Street. The BWA has had to excavate the road for a second time knowing the parts were not available the first time around.
Wastage!”
The current episode of the ongoing BWA soap opera of mismanagement and blatant squandermania represents the last criterion on the checklist of requirements for the ‘Privatization’ of this utility.
Privatization is the only solution to the fiasco taking place with this vital commodity that undergirds the country’s public health and economic survival. No reliable water distribution system means no proper sanitation, no dependable public health system no tourism no FDI no viable economy.
Nothing will please the IMF and other lending agencies more than to see this utility owned and manage by private interests within the regulatory framework of a more effective FTC.
There is no way any international lending agency (China included) will be prepared to invest hundreds of millions of foreign dollars in a crumbling utility under the current ownership arrangement and management structures as prevail at the BWA.
If Barbados needs a West Coast sewage project and additional investment to upgrade its water resources and related water management programmes, then it must get with the real programme of a modern economic world.
You can mess around with your educational capital for short-term fiscal gain but messing with water can result in only one outcome. Disaster!!
In the 1999 General Election,Kerrie Symmonds the DLP candidate for St James South promised a third access road would be required to facilitate the construction of the West Coast Sewerage Project.I agreed then and I agree now that the absence of that 3rd access road to Ronald Mapp highway is a major problem to commuters who use highway 1.Current access via Holders Hill or Cummins highway at Frank Worrell roundabout is like having to travel to JFK through Miami when Jet Blue flies from Bdos to JFK direct,its time consuming and inconvenient.If these jokers cant get 4 Seasons off the ground,its wishful thinking to think they have the skill to get the West coast sewerage project started.
John
How come Nicky allowed Sandy to take away the Waterworks nestegg.The story is that Nicky became heartbroken and ill when Sandy took up the cudgel and wielded it.
Rather than present to BU any information from the Auditor General’s Reports for the financial years ended March 31, 1994 to March 31, 2008 to substantiate your accusations of financial mismanagement allegedly perpetrated by the former BLP administration, you prefer, as is your usual style, to write generalized statements and political rhetoric to respond to issue. Surely you must be aware that in the absence of proof, your comments will be dismissed as political jobby. This does not augur well for people who are always mentioning “facts” and “truth.” I invited you, and by extention the BU household, to read pages 114 to 122 of the 2014 Auditor General’s Report.
“The available water has been accessed since 1996!!
Increase the rates and dampen demand.
This will result in an Improvement of the finances of BWA.
This will allow further investment in improving the distribution system.
Simple solution”
Do you conveniently forget that before the ink dried on the ministerial instruments of appointment in 2008, the David Thompson administration increased water rates by 60% to do all of the above. Except from some piecemeal water work activity around the city and various parts of the island I sometimes wonder on what has the additional revenue been spent.
“Notice with somewhat concern that the same instigators led by Mia Mottley have reemerged spouting the same ole political rhetoric with a beat reminiscence of marches and calls for revolt but having no solutions”
Please be informed that the leader of the march in St Joseph is none other to his credit Mr Randall rouse who has been the unsuccessful DLP candidate for St Joseph in the last two elections. For rallying on behalf of his constituents ; may he be vistorious next time around and take Mr Marshall off Ms Mottley’s hands.
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