Quarry Hill Gets Reliable Access to Water
By: , February 9, 2026
Photo: Rudranath Fraser
Minister of Water, Environment and Climate Change, Hon. Matthew Samuda (second right), has a drink of water at the recent official commissioning of the Quarry Hill Pipeline Improvement Project at the Quarry Hill Basic School in St. Catherine. He is joined by Regional Manager at the National Water Commission (NWC), Gawaine Johnson (left); Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Wayne O. Robertson (third right), Member of Parliament for St. Catherine South, Fitz Jackson (right), and other stakeholders.The Full Story
More than 2,000 residents of Quarry Hill in St. Catherine now have reliable access to potable water, following the completion of the $36-million Quarry Hill Pipeline Improvement Project.
Undertaken by the National Water Commission (NWC), the project involved the installation of approximately 5.2 kilometres of Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) distribution pipelines to resolve low-pressure issues, and improve reliability, efficiency, and quality of potable water delivery.
It will benefit areas such as Sunflower Circle, Sundown Avenue, Sunbeam Crescent, Sunbeam Close, Henderson View, and Port Henderson Drive.
Minister of Water, Environment and Climate Change, Hon. Matthew Samuda, in addressing the recent commissioning ceremony at the Quarry Hill Basic School, said that the Government continues to upgrade water infrastructure, while restoring systems that were impacted by Hurricane Melissa.
“There are persons without water both pre-Melissa and post-Hurricane Melissa, but… we are working to restore those who had it and lost it, and we are working to ensure that those who didn’t have it before get the opportunity to have water,” he stated.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Wayne O. Robertson, in his remarks, said that access to clean, fresh water is a basic human right.
He said that the Government is committed to safe, affordable, and sustainable drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene for all citizens by 2030, “ensuring that everyone, when you turn on your pipe, you get water”.
Member of Parliament for St. Catherine South, Fitz Jackson, commended Minister Samuda for responding to the needs of the citizens.
“This represents one of the most substantial, critical infrastructure that we will have in place, where we have water distribution throughout the communities,” he noted.
The Quarry Hill project supports improved public health, quality of life and local economic activity, while advancing the NWC’s mandate of modernising infrastructure, expanding coverage and supporting sustainable development.
