Improved services

With drought conditions still having and adverse effect on the island’s water resources, the Barbados Water Authority (BWA) is taking steps to bring two additional desalination plants on stream to help with water distribution.

This news came from the Minister of Energy and Water Resources, Wilfred Abrahams, as he addressed the press at his offices yesterday during a brief press meeting.

“As part of the settlement with Innotech, we are going to have access to two desalination plants. One will go into St. Lucy, while the other is going to go into area of Joe’s River to try and provide more water for St. Joseph,” Abrahams stated.

New trucks have also been sourced by the BWA, with their arrival into the island being estimated in April of 2020.

“We had some water trucks that came in previously that caused us a world of problems because they do not have the specifications for Barbados. As it stands now, all of the trucks we have, ten are currently on the road. We have five new tankers coming in at the end of April next year, at a cost of USD350 000 per tank, with the funds being supplied by the Green Climate Fund (GCF),” the minister revealed.

These new plants and trucks will aid the BWA in its efforts to help provide a more reliable service to residents at these often disadvantaged communities, however the Minister was quick to remind Barbadians that the effects of the drought are still prevalent on the island even through this current Hurricane Season.

“We are going to have to look as a country, not just at our distribution network, but also how we consume water. Barbadians are going to have building or buying water saving devices. We are not in normal times. This is the hurricane season, but people should still be storing water.”