THE Maritime Administration Department (MARAD) yesterday said the Cane Garden sea defence project at Leguan has seen some 750 metres of Rip-Rap completed to date, and works are expected to end by December 2014.

Project Engineer, Dennis Ramsingh said that approximately 1,000 metres of sea defence has been subjected to severe erosion, resulting in loss of all the mangroves within this stretch; therefore, the earthen embankment had been fully exposed to the ocean.

He iterated that all phases of the project are expected to be completed in December 2014.

Albert James, Chairman of the Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) of the Enterprise/Leguan area, said the Project began at a slow pace, but significant strides have so far been made.

“Initially, the contractor was progressing (slowly) on the project; but, to date, the residents are happier, and would like to see completion of the work in a timely manner.”

Some residents have expressed gratitude to the Government for the improvement on the land since the project started. Mr. Sheik Ayube said that farming is made easier now that flooding does not occur. “The water has eased tremendously, and we can now have access to the land without worrying about the water coming in. We would like to thank the Ministry of Works for assisting us in this regard,” he said.

Another resident, Mr. Lachhman Dwarkha, said the contractor executing the project deserves a medal for the work done so far.

“We are very pleased and satisfied with the work completed to date, and the Contractor truly deserves to be rewarded for satisfactory work. We now have dry land to work on, and thanks to the Government of Guyana for their input,” he said.

This project is funded by the Government of Guyana.