130,000-Gallon Water Tank Commissioned to Boost Irrigation in Manchester
By: , August 18, 2025
Photo: Adrian Walker
Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining, Hon. Floyd Green (third left), and State Minister in the Agriculture Ministry, Hon. Franklin Witter (third right), share lens time with stakeholders and Ministry representatives during the commissioning ceremony for a 130,000-gallon sectional water tank in New Forest, Manchester, on August 15. From left are National Irrigation Commission Limited (NIC) Regional Systems Manager for Clarendon and Manchester, Fitzgerald Reid; Permanent Secretary in the Agriculture Ministry, Dermon Spence; and NIC Chief Executive Officer, Joseph Gyles, and Director of Engineering and Technical Services, Rohan Stewart.
Photo: Adrian Walker
Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining, Hon. Floyd Green (right), converses with National Irrigation Commission Limited’s Chief Executive Officer, Joseph Gyles, during the commissioning ceremony for a 130,000-gallon sectional water tank in New Forest, Manchester, on August 15.The Full Story
Farmers in Manchester will now have access to more water, especially during periods of drought, following the commissioning of a 130,000-gallon sectional water tank by Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining, Hon. Floyd Green, on August 15.
Speaking during a ceremony at the National Irrigation Commission Limited (NIC) New Forest Office in Manchester, Minister Green described the tank’s installation as a “significant investment”, which will have a positive impact on the livelihoods of farmers in the area.
He disclosed that the newly installed tank holds 230 per cent more water than the capacity of the previous facility.
Highlighting additional benefits of the tank, Mr. Green noted that it will streamline the loading process for trucks transporting water to farmers, thereby reducing wait times and improving operational efficiency.
“This 130,000-gallon tank with our modern connection will take only 45 minutes to be refilled. The good news is that while this is being refilled, it will not break the service of filling the trucks that are here… there will be absolutely no halt at all in the refilling process throughout the entire day. We will be able to run the system 100 per cent of the time. So, in essence, that makes us much more efficient,” the Minister added.
He pointed out that under the previous system, truck loading had to be halted multiple times throughout the day to refill the tank.
“In fact, what the NIC would do is fill the tank overnight, and by 7:15 a.m. they are ready to go and trucks would be parked up for farmers who are trying to get water into their fields. By 10:00 a.m., that tank and those water resources would be expended; so we would have to halt the filling of the trucks while we refill the tank,” the Minister explained.
Mr. Green informed that the newly installed tank was in operation prior to the August 15 commissioning ceremony and has provided more than 31 million gallons of water to farmers in the area since the start of the year.
“So, the good news is that, even prior to the drought, we [have] put things in place to serve our farmers much more efficiently; and I can tell you that the sort of complaints I used to get, I have not had one in the last few months,” the Minister noted.
Meanwhile, Mr. Green commended the NIC for its hard work and partnership with the Agriculture Ministry in installing the sectional water tank.
