Martha Brae water treatment plant to be back up by June, says NWC boss

WESTERN BUREAU:

MARK BARNETT, president of the National Water Commission (NWC), has given his assurance that the company will be working to bring its water treatment plant in Martha Brae, Trelawny, up to full capacity by June this year.

Barnett made the announcement at the official opening of the NWC’s newly renovated customer care office at Bevin Avenue in Montego Bay, St James.

“We did a massive investment some years ago to improve water supply in Montego Bay, and then we moved on to Falmouth. Unfortunately, we were not able to realise the full volume of water from that system because of unrelated issues. But rest assured, by the time June comes we will be able to produce the full 11 million gallons of water from that Martha Brae facility,” said Barnett.

“During times of heavy rainfall we hope we will solve that problem, where we do not have to have a shutdown; and during times of low flow, we can still produce a sufficient volume of water. But we are bringing that Martha Brae water treatment plant up to its full capacity of 11 million gallons of water per day, and it simply means we will be able to better serve Montego Bay in St James, plus Trelawny, and going further west into Hanover, because they are all linked,” Barnett added.

RENOVATION WORK

Ground was broken at the Martha Brae treatment plant in 2014 for renovation work to take place there, including repairs to the main plant and construction of an additional plant. That work fell under the Northwestern Parishes Corridor Water Supply Improvement Scheme, part of the US$111-million Category B of the Jamaica Water Supply Improvement Project.

Up to last October, the NWC was working to restore normality at the plant, which was operating at up to 60 per cent of its capacity due to mechanical challenges. This resulted in decreased supply to customers in Trelawny, St James and St Ann.

Barnett also announced that the NWC has earmarked $150 million in its 2022-23 budget for 26 projects to be carried out across Jamaica, to provide improved access to potable water.

“For this year, we have about 26 small projects that we are going to undertake right across the island, and these will involve both replacement and extension of supply to rural communities. It is really part of the whole process of improving access to potable water,” said Barnett, who refrained from naming any specific communities being targeted for the initiative.

Barnett’s remarks came shortly after Homer Davis, minister without portfolio in the Office of the Prime Minister, complained that rural communities tend to be overlooked in the provision of regular water supply.

Davis, who is also member of parliament for St James Southern, noted that he had previously written to the NWC in relation to that issue, and called for the water company to give the parish of St James a full and consistent supply of the precious commodity.