Gonzales: 24/7 water supply for three-quarters of T&T soon
Senior Reporter
jensen.lavende@guardian.co.tt
Minister of Public Utilities Marvin Gonzales says three-quarters of the country will soon be getting a 24-hour water supply, an improvement from the 70 per cent promised two years ago.
He made the announcement yesterday at a media conference to discuss plans for the 33rd Annual Caribbean Water and Wastewater Association (CWWA) Conference, which will take place October 21-25.
Gonzales had previously spoken about improvements in the water supply at a Senate hearing in 2022 where he had promised that 70 per cent of the country was going to move to a 24/7 water cycle. He said then that WASA’s Strategic Plan included stabilising and improving the water supply within three to five years.
Yesterday that 70 per cent increased to 75 per cent when the minister said, “We have moved the 24/7 level of coverage from 31 per cent in 2000 to 61 per cent as it stands now. Based on the work we have set for ourselves for the next couple months, we expect for the very first time in Trinidad and Tobago to reach 24/7 level of coverage, maybe passing 75 per cent.”
Between August 9 and 11, WASA’s Caroni plant was powered down for upgrades, regional maintenance and repairs on 23 projects. There were replacements of valves, pumps, transmissions and transformers.
Gonzales said the water sector transformation programme now in place with assistance from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) includes construction of wells and wastewater treatment plants as well as refurbishing of water lines.
He said the harsh dry season affected the distribution of water and dams and reservoirs fell below acceptable levels because of climate change. This brought the country to the brink of a water emergency, so WASA took stringent measures, including strict scheduling of the water cycle and cutbacks in water production.
“We have to spend billions of dollars in the utilities sector to prepare our population for the impact of climate change,” Gonzales said, adding that it will take a collaborative effort to address water security.
That will include an eco-system of laws and regulations to ensure T&T’s population and the wider Caribbean have a secure water future.
He added that the water crisis won’t be fixed with more wells but with better consumption.
“I recognise that there are some communities who are now benefiting from a reliable supply of water based on wells that we have drilled, where they have moved from no water to a consistent supply of water and those same communities who were once cleaning their yard with brooms but as soon as they get water in their pipes, they throw away the broom and now they are using water hose. So, you put more water in the grid and consumption increases,” he said.
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