Government Improving Water Supply for 5,000 Residents in St. Catherine
By: , July 21, 2015The Key Point:
Photo: Contributed
Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller (second left – front row) breaks ground for the development and expansion of the Goldmine Water Supply Upgrading Project at Bellas Gate Primary School, St. Catherine on Friday, July 17. Also participating are (from left) Acting President of the NWC, Mark Barnett, Member of Parliament for St. Catherine West Central Dr. Kenneth Baugh, Minister of Water, Land, Environment & Climate Change Robert Pickersgill, Mayor of Spanish Town Norman Scott. In the background (left of the Prime Minister) is NWC Chairman Prakash Vaswani. Five thousand persons from several communities in St. Catherine will soon have better water supply, as a result of the $75M project.The Facts
- Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller has taken an active interest in ensuring that the project is undertaken and broke ground for the $75 million water project on Friday, July 17 at the Bellas Gate Primary School in St. Catherine.
- Contracts for the work have been awarded by the NWC to Alcar Construction and Haulage Company Ltd., Champion Industrial Equipment Ltd. and Florida Aquastore.
The Full Story
Five thousand persons from several communities in St. Catherine will soon have better water supply, as a result of the development and expansion of the Goldmine Water Supply System in the parish. Persons in the communities of Bellas Gate, Cocoa Ridge, Rhule Town, Bois Content, Bagham, Planters Hall, Marlie Hill, Breeze Mill, Hill Top, Bellefield, Browns Hall, Blue Hole, Wood Hall, Bartons, Macca Tree and Fisher Spring will benefit from the rehabilitation work being undertaken by the Government’s main water supply agency, the National Water Commission (NWC).
Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller has taken an active interest in ensuring that the project is undertaken and broke ground for the $75 million water project on Friday, July 17 at the Bellas Gate Primary School in St. Catherine. She noted that “the current state of the water supply system is making the severe effects of the drought worse for the people of this area. As we improve water management it is important that we improve the capacity of this system to provide a reliable supply to the people.”
The project is being managed for the NWC by Rural Water Supply Limited and will involve the following work:
- Repair of the water channels to increase water volume from the sources;
- Installation of meters to measure the inflows at the Goldmine Spring source;
- Replacing and upgrading of filters at the plant;
- Repairs to the retaining walls and access bridge at the plant;
- Installation of stand-by pumps;
- Upgrading of the motor, starter and electrical works for the relift pumps; and
- Repairs to the Bellas Gate/Cocoa Ridge Tank
Contracts for the work have been awarded by the NWC to Alcar Construction and Haulage Company Ltd., Champion Industrial Equipment Ltd. and Florida Aquastore.
Speaking to the urgency of improving water supply for various communities across Jamaica, the Prime Minister emphasised that “The Government is fully committed to doing all that we can to ensure that the water services throughout Jamaica are constantly expanded and improved to serve the needs of our people no matter where they live.”
Over the past 3 years the NWC has invested $20 Billion in water projects for both urban and rural communities across Jamaica.