By Sue-Ann Wayow
DESPITE the heavy rainfalls, several communities in Mayaro still have a shortage of pipe-borne water.
Member of Parliament for Mayaro Rushton Paray in a press release on Thursday said that he has made several attempts to have the problem rectified. But all have proved futile.
Paray said he tried on several occasions to get the intervention of Public Utilities Minister Marvin Gonzales and the Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA) executive director Dr Lennox Sealey.
He stated, “Residents, including the elderly and infirm, and businesses, which also comprise the hospitality sector and agro-processors, are suffering for a supply of the essential commodity although WASA’s dams are filled.
“The inefficient distribution is the result of blatant victimisation of residents of rural communities and a stark refusal to restore facilities and improve capacity.”
Paray who said he did his own research in the area showed that WASA neglected to connect an intake line from the Petrotrin water treatment plant in Guayaguayare.
The plant has remained idle only because of the absence of the connecting line, he said.
He added that there was also an urgent need for upgrading of Maloney and Stone Bright Water Treatment Plants and the addition of new wells in order to increase production.
Such improvements would boost capacity to the point that Mayaro and adjoining communities would be able to enjoy a 24-hour supply.
In recent years, there has also been a steady decrease in production from the Cedar Grove well fields. The Number 9 well, which is the largest, has been taken out of service as a result of salt water intrusion. This well contributed greatly to servicing the Mayaro town centre Paray said.
Residents of Bristol Village, Mafeking, St. Anns, Manzanilla Road, Ortoire Village, Cascadoux, Kernahan and parts of Mayaro are affected by the poor scheduling of the San Pedro Booster Station. The station regulates the supply to those districts from the Navet Dam, the MP added.
A tank at Mayaro which is filled from the Navet system was also in danger of collapse as a result of soil slippage.
Paray stated, “These and other critical remedial works are long overdue, but WASA’s management remains flagrantly vindictive to communities of the Mayaro constituency.”
He said the efficiency of WASA was crucial during the pandemic especially when personal hygiene and community sanitation are a matter of life and death.
