SOUTH COAST FIX

Starting today the Barbados Water Authority is working on a permanent fix to the South Coast Sewage Plant issue.

This was revealed by CEO of the BWA, Keithroy Halliday, as he spoke with the media during a press briefing which took place at Trinity Business Centre yesterday afternoon.

“Excavation will commence starting tomorrow [today]. This excavation will initially target two major points; the first being at the entrance of the Graeme Hall Nature Sanctuary. The next is expected to begin one week later in from of the old Scotia Bank,” he said.

“Parallel to this, an inspection and repair of the sanitary inflow line will also begin. We estimate that with a good push, continuing to work 24 hours a day, we will have repair works completed within the coming weeks.

The CEO expressed that the BWA recognised the importance of resolving this long running sewage problem. He revealed that as they entered the next stage, there will be disruptions on Highway 7 for a relatively short period of time.

“We will need the co-operation of all stakeholders and the public as we come nearer to the solution to the current problem affecting the South Coast. We thank you for your continued patience and understanding as we work towards the permanent fix,” he said.

Halliday noted that since completion of Priority No. 1, where they diverted the filtered waste water into the six injection wells that were recently completed, they were able to see no sewage over flow on the streets. He noted he was satisfied with the temporary solution for the South Coast Sewage Crisis, however, he was looking forward to the more permanent fix.

As a result of this temporary fix, the force main, the outgoing line, is now empty and accessible, which is why they can now work on repairing the line.
Minister of Energy and Water Resources, Wilfred Abrahams expressed that even though this permanent fix is able to be “up and running perfectly”, he stressed that this was not the end of it.

“The fact is we have outgrown this system and we now need to upgrade to a tertiary level plant in keeping with the national policies in respect to water management, waste water management and sewage,” he said.

“So, at the end of the day, the ideal situation for us, when the country is in the position to afford it, is to upgrade the plant entirely.”