Thousands to Benefit from $300-Million Hampshire/Riverdale Water System

Approximately 3,500 residents of communities in rural St. Catherine will benefit from the construction of the $300-million Hampshire/Riverdale Water Supply System.

Speaking at the ceremony to break ground for the project on Wednesday (January 29), Minister without portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation, Hon. Matthew Samuda, said that the new system will ensure reliable access to potable water for the residents.

The source at the Hamwalk/Redwood Water Supply System will be used to supply Hampshire/Riverdale, with a separate pipeline to be installed from the source and interconnect to the existing pipeline network and into the beneficiary communities.

Minister Samuda said that the project, which is being spreadhead by Rural Water Supply Limited (RWSL) will be undertaken in phases.

“This is phase one, which we expect to last some four months, and in that phase, $60 million will be deployed.

This is a clear signal to you that the work begins now and we are sequencing our work to ensure there’s no break between the particular phases,” he assured the residents.

“We are working to significantly transform the water in this community by Christmas,” Mr. Samuda added.

The Hampshire/Riverdale Water Supply System is one of 19 such developments that the RWSL is pursuing across the island.

Minister Samuda said the projects speak to the Government’s commitment to attaining United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG 6), which seeks to ensure that every citizen has access to potable water and sanitation by 2030.

Member of Parliament for St. Catherine North Eastern, Kerensia Morrison, in welcoming the breaking of ground, said the residents have been looking forward to the start of the work.

“We have watched it going through the procurement stages,” she said, noting that the project is a “massive, massive development for my people”.