Waste not, want not
ON THIS Valentine’s Day, we wish to take the opportunity to send a loving reminder to all and sundry about the  serious alternative to conserving water, in view of  the shortage of this most valuable commodity.
It is a straightforward message — conserve or perish. The serious looming shortage of potable water for domestic needs is not an issue for narrow party politics.
All are involved and all will be affected if they do not commit themselves to careful management in the use of water at home, offices and business places.
Guyanese who pay attention to developments in other countries of our Caribbean Community will be aware that the threatened shortage of potable water is not just a problem for Guyana.
It is a current spreading problem over which there are warnings in, for example, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica and Barbados.
In Trinidad and Tobago, the public sector-administered Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA) — frequently a source of controversies resulting from poor services — is currently at the centre of a row over claims of arbitrary cuts in water supplies in some areas, with complaints that could affect this week’s carnival celebrations.
Having earlier forced a halt by a private contractor’s watering of the lawns at Prime Minister Patrick Manning’s official residence, WASA on Friday switched off supply for the water fountain at the International Water Front Centre in Port-of-Spain. It also warned of “getting tough” with those who violate restrictions in water use. Charges have already been instituted against those involved in the illegal sale of water from vehicles.
In the case of Barbados, the Water Authority (BWA) has decided to enact a “drought management plan,” should it become necessary in view of declining rainfall, a problem that continues from last year.
Here in Guyana, the dreaded ‘El Nino’ season, which previously had serious consequences for the nation’s agricultural sector, is already provoking alarm signals.
In the circumstances, the old maxim, ‘waste not, want not’ is very applicable to all households and sectors of the economy for proper management in the use of water.
As the saying goes, better to save than to be sorry when the taps run dry. Parents and children need to understand their individual responsibilities in avoiding wastage of water.