Water woes
Thu, 06/09/2016 - 12:00am
FTC: Wasted water placing strain on BWA
WATER which cannot be accounted for is having a significant impact on the ability of the Barbados Water Authority (BWA) to meet the demands of customers.
And the Fair Trading Commission, the BWA’s new regulator, is warning that the growing strain on this already scarce resource will increase as a result of climate change.
The FTC has just published a Consultation Paper on the water sector and the BWA, as it embarks on a programme to set standards of service for the Authority.
As part of that process, the Commission is inviting Barbadians to comment on the Paper which outlines recommendations for the development, monitoring and enforcement of benchmarks which
will be used to create the standards.
In the Paper which is dated June 6, 2016, the Commission is pointing to a number of worrying issues that affect service delivery and which will do so in the future.
It said that the high incidence of water not accounted for directly impacts the BWA’s ability to effectively and efficiently service customers.
While acknowledging that water production has grown to meet consumption requirements, the Commission said this situation has been inflated by wastage through unaccounted for water (UFW).
“This UFW was estimated to be between 40 per cent and 49 per cent, which suggests an inordinately high level of inefficiency (BWA, 2011), said the Commission in its paper.
It noted that studies undertaken, including that of the American Water and Wastewater Association, suggest that the level of UFW to be in the region of 10 per cent, “making the BWA’s realised level a cause for concern”.
It noted further that “this high level of UFW contributes significantly to the abstraction requirements, lifespan of the abstraction wells, the pumping requirements and costs, including electricity.”
The FTC said that Barbados was listed as the 15th most water scarce country in the world and the 16th most densely population by the United Nations.
However, in cautioning about the impact from climate change, the FTC said that “as a small island state, such impacts are amplified while the country’s ability to mitigate these impacts is very limited”.
The Commission is soliciting public comments on the establishment of specific minimum mandatory standards for the BWA and the level of compensatory payment for the failure to reach the designated targets.
It is encouraging the widest possible participation in the consultation process.
Since last year Government has embarked on a major mains laying programme to replace old mains in an attempt to boost the water delivery system.
(JB)