THE Mayor and City Council (M&CC) had discovered, through its ‘Green City’ initiative, that it is difficult getting to the bottom of drains and alleyways.This is because business people feel they have the right and privilege to compromise the City’s fragile drainage system, Mayor Hamilton Green told members of the media yesterday.

But this pattern of behaviour will no longer be tolerated, Mayor Green said, as the City Engineer’s Department has been instructed to spare no effort in returning things to normal; to find a way to rid the city of those unsightly covers, which make it difficult to access drains and trenches.

He, however, cautioned that doing so will be no easy task, given what has been happening in the city and elsewhere over the past generations.
“We are dealing with change, and it is the most conspicuous and evasive feature of human existence,” Mayor Green said, adding:
“However, the time for change has come, and it will not be easy, as there will be some dislocation. But the end product will be a glorious green Georgetown.”

He made the point that while he is not opposed to the idea of covering the drains and trenches, he is more in favour of using solid grill work, which would allow for easier access, as they are easily removable, and allow for persons to see the waterway and be able to clean it properly.
Which brings us to the issue of flooding, which has been a thorn in the side of the M&CC in the last few years, and which Mayor Green attributes to not being able to access drainage conduits so as to properly clean or maintain them.
He noted that while the actions of many might be well-meaning, all they have succeeded in doing is to contribute to the derogation of the city’s fragile drainage system.
He named as one such well-meaning project the Foot Steps Mega Mall’s paving of the alleyway, which causes the neighbouring church to be flooded when it rains.
Noting that the church is currently sinking, Mayor Green said the offending paved alleyway would have to be broken up soon, in order to regularise the situation. (Navendra Seoraj)