– field trip, workshop and tour planned for schools in Georgetown and Berbice

GUYANA Water Inc. (GWI) is partnering with the Guyana Power and Light Company, (GPL) for this year’s observance of International World Water Day which is being celebrated worldwide under the theme ‘Water and Energy’.  The utility companies will celebrate the observance today with a one-day educational field trip, workshop and tour for in excess of 50 students selected from primary schools in Georgetown and East Berbice, a press release said.
GWI’s Chief Executive Officer, Shaik Baksh is quoted as saying that, “we have decided to continue with our school education theme and host a programme tailored to enhance the knowledge of primary school students on water and energy conservation. GWI’s National School Education Programme has yielded positive results as school-aged children continue to be pivotal in propagating the message of conservation. This workshop is meant to continue that success with a focus on how much energy is utilized by the utility to provide water service country-wide.”

The CEO further stated that the utility was pleased to partner with GPL as “the theme of water and energy conservation is vital to the operation of both utilities, so it is indeed quite significant that the two entities have collaborated on this education initiative to change attitudes towards water and energy conservation.”
GWI currently spends in excess of $6M per month to operate a single water treatment facility. And the GPL in response to the need for customers to manage energy consumption has launched pre-paid meters and a series of Energy Conservation and Demand Side Management initiatives.  It is on this momentum that the two utilities have joined forces to raise awareness on water and energy management.
Students will experience a full tour of GPL’s Canje East Berbice Power Plant as well as a workshop and tour at GWI’s New Amsterdam Water Treatment Facility.  The workshop will include presentations on the critical link between the provision of water service and energy consumption as well as water conservation and energy management methods that students can adopt.
Students will also receive information kits to engage other students from their respective schools in information sharing.  Essays from participants on their experiences at the workshop will also be posted on the websites and social media pages of both utilities.

International World Water Day will be officially observed on tomorrow, March 22. The release added that more information on the GWI and GPL collaboration can be found at www.gwiguyana.com, www.gplinc.net as well as social media: www.facebook.com/everydropcountsgy and https://www.facebook.com/GPLIncorporated .
The release said further that energy and water demand will rise with the rise in population and by 2030, renewable energy demand will have risen by 60% (WWAP (World Water Assessment Programme) 2009) and EIA (Energy Information Administration) (2010) estimates that global energy consumption will increase by around 50% from 2007 to 2035.
With rising agricultural output, both water and energy consumption will increase which will lead to increased energy and water competition within the users and stakeholders. A rise of close to 19% of global agricultural water consumption is predicted by 2050. The situation could be worse without any technological advancement in the energy sector or with a status quo without water and energy policy development.
More information can be found at: http://www.un.org/waterforlifedecade/water_and_energy_2014/