Dear Editor
THE Guyana Water Incorporated wishes to respond to the Guyana Times article titled, “Water is life, but this water is killing us,” published on Tuesday, April 18, 2017.
In keeping with our mission “To deliver safe, adequate and affordable water and to ensure safe sewerage systems for improved public health and sustainable economic development,” the Guyana Water Incorporated has been working tirelessly over the past years and continues to work to ensure this is a reality nationwide. As such, the residents of Hubu Backdam, Region Three, are no exception.
The community of Hubu Backdam was being served by the Vergenoegen water treatment plant. Because the plant was operating above its design capacity, residents were receiving a low level of service and in some cases, no service at all. In light of this fact and repeated complaints from the said residents, GWI moved to activate the Hubu well at a cost of three million dollars. Activation of this well resulted in elevated water pressure to above second-floor level and 24 hours supply. Upon completion of the project, residents expressed satisfaction with the well being restored. However, similar to some 50 percent of our well stations across the country, water from the Hubu well supplies untreated water and therefore has an average iron content of 8mg/l.
Because of our commitment to provide safe, potable water to all Guyanese, GWI will re-examine the likelihood of serving the residents of Vergenoegen, while improving the quality of water from the Hubu well. GWI apologises for the inconvenience caused and wishes to assure residents that every effort will be made to improve the water quality being delivered to residents of Hubu Backdam.
Regards
Leana Bradshaw
Public Relations Officer
Guyana Water Inc