Caribbean Water and Sewage Association Inc.

July-December 2014

CDB hosted Caribbean Water Leaders in Barbados

CAWASA Directors and fellow CEOs of Caribbean water utilities met, talked and decided on
several matters pertinent to the preservation and conservation of the regions water resources.
The year 2014 closes with much
optimism for 2015 and beyond.
Its been a year in which Water
has been discussed and analyzed
at the highest levels and regional
Water entities have gone out of
their way to put issues squarely
on the table, most professing to be
ready to take those steps today to
ensure a better future for Caribbean Water tomorrow.
One such regional entity living
up to its commitment to Water is
the Caribbean development bank
(CDB), which on November 27th
and 28th, hosted Chief Executive
Officers (CEOs) from 16 regional
public and private sector water
utility companies in Barbados for
a special Caribbean Water Utility
Reform Workshop.
The meeting -- hosted by the
CDB in collaboration with the
World Bank Group, the Caribbean Regional Fund for Wastewater Management (CReW) and
the Caribbean Water and Sewerage Association (CAWASA)
was also attended by CAWASAs new Executive Director Ignatius Jean.

CAWASA Executive Director Ignatius Jean (second from left) along with CAWASA Directors and fellow Caribbean water
CEOs gathered in Barbados at the end of November to discuss challenges and opportunities facing regional water agencies
and communities. CAWASAs 2014 Annual General Meeting was also held at the same venue

The Barbados meeting examined a

2012 Caribbean Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) Report, which
found that Caribbean countries had
made consistent progress in expanding the coverage of drinking water
services. However, it was also found
that a high level of access to improved
water and sanitation services did not
mean consistently good or reliable
service, because the financing required was limited.

The region has done well. However, we have some ground to cover
to increase and maintain access and
quality, said Edward Green, Division Chief at the CDBs Technical Cooperation Division.
The CDB itself has contributed significantly over the year to Water Development across the region. Since
2005, it has funded the installation
and upgrade of more than 3,400 kilometres of water lines, affording over

63,000 households (200,000 people) in the region with access to a

clean water supply and improved
sanitation.
In 2013, the bank provided funding of US$3.2 million in funding
for water and sanitation projects,
while US$4.7 million in grants
through the Basic Needs Trust
Fund (BNTF) were directed to
providing water supply systems
for vulnerable groups.

Bahamas hosted largest gathering ever of Caribbean Water Ministers!

Eleven Ministers committed to better sell Water to their Cabinets
The 10th Annual High Level Forum (HLF) hosted by the Caribbean
Water and Wastewater Association
(CWWA) and the Global Water Partnership-Caribbean (GWP-C) in collaboration with the Global Environment Facility's Caribbean Regional
Fund for Wastewater Management
(GEF-CReW) on October 9th and
10th, 2014 in The Bahamas, saw the
largest showing of Caribbean Water
Ministers in the Forum's history.
Eleven (11) Caribbean Ministers
with responsibility for water resources management attended the
10th HLF. They included the host
Minister, The Honourable Philip E.
Brave Davis, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Works and Urban Development of The Bahamas;
The Honourable Evan Gumbs,

Caribbean Water Ministers are seen here at the 10th Annual High Level Forum (HLF) hosted by the CWWA and the
(GWP-C) in collaboration with the GEF-CReW on October 9th and 10th, 2014 in the Bahamas
Minister of Infrastructure, Communications, Utilities and Housing of Anguilla; The Honourable Sharon Ramclam,

In this Issue
Editorial
and Secretariat News
Page 2

Regional Rainwater Harvesting Forum Pages 3
Caribbean attends German Water-loss Forum Page
Meet the new CAWASA Executive Director Pages 6 and 7
Page8
Engaging the Media for Change
Member
Utility
News

Page
9

EU Helping Water Company
Page 10
World Water and Children
Back Page

Deputy Minister of Natural Resources

and Agriculture of Belize; The Honourable Reginald Austrie; Minister of

Lands, Housing, Settlements and

Water Resource Management of
Continued on page 10

Page 2

July-December 2014

e-Source

Editorial

Let the Caribbean water conversation flow!

Water is certainly going places these days.
There can be no doubt that the worlds
most precious and popular liquid is gaining more attention now at higher and wider
Caribbean levels than ever before. Indeed,
water is flowing. People are talking about
it, communities are better understanding
why to save it, entire countries are waking
up to the need to protect and preserve its
sources. At national levels, new regulations
are being implemented and governments
are adopting more programs supporting
biodiversity and more protected areas are
being declared. And now, more Caribbean
Governments (than ever before) are saying
they will not only join the water conversation, but will also give it a higher place on
their national and regional Cabinet and
CARICOM agendas.
The High Level Forum (HLF) of Caribbean Ministers of Water in the Bahamas in
October saw ministers and Caribbean water
stakeholders sit and find common ground
to jointly push the regions water cause, also
calling on CARICOM to place water higher
on the regional governmental agenda. The
recent World Water Expo in Miami also offered a wider platform for interaction between Caribbean and Latin American water
stakeholders to discuss current and future
prospects for this vital resource and allowed

them to exchange, share experiences and cooperate towards achievement of mutual goals.
The Global Water PartnershipCaribbean
(GWP-C) has played a significant role working
alongside other regional water partners to ensure the water conversation continues to flow
and that agreements are implemented and recommendations pursued beyond the conference
rooms.
In the midst of it all, CAWASA has in the period since July 2014 continued to engage member utilities and related water companies in implementation of adopted decisions. CAWASA
continues to collaborate with other regional
and international stakeholders, while providing training opportunities for water operators
and supervisors across the region to ensure better delivery of water at national levels and in
accordance with agreed regional approaches.
At the end of November, CAWASA collaborated with the Caribbean Development bank
(CDB) to host a workshop on Reforms for CEOs
of Water Utilities and a Water Leaders Summit
in Barbados. CAWASAs 2014 Annual general
Meeting was also held at the same time.
CAWASA will continue to work in 2015 to engage the Caribbean public in the ongoing water
conversation through conferences and public
outreach programs. However, Caribbean people and governments need to move faster to
better address the challenges of making the re-

gion drought free. The region needs to adapt

to Climate Change more quickly. Storage and
conservation, finding alternative sources, better and safer handling of waste water all will
have to continue to be priority agenda items
next year and beyond.
Water-scarce regions around the world are
forced to adapt to new realities as Climate
Change and human interventions combine to
put them through great new challenges. The
Caribbean therefore has no choice but to adapt
to the new realities and adopt the necessary
changes.
CAWASA and the other regional stakeholders are not yet where theyd like to see the region be at this time, but all do honestly pledge
to continue to work towards achieving that level of readiness and accomplishment required to
ensure that Caribbean people better and more
fully understand and value the simple but true
saying that Water if Life!
In this the final issue for the year, e-Source offers another 12 pages of coverage of water news
and issues from around the region -- and once
again invites all CAWASA affiliates to continue
to update the Secretariat on actions on issues in
2015 and beyond.
Meanwhile, Happy Holidays and do feel
free to follow our Cayman affiliates example
and Give a Gift of Water for Christmas and the
New Year!

e-Source is produced by the

Caribbean Water and Sewerage
Association (CWASA). All mail
and inquiries should be sent to:
Mrs Suzanne Joseph
Programme Officer
Caribbean Water and Sewerage
Association Inc (CAWASA)
Unit No. 15, Orange Park
Commercial Centre
Bois d'Orange, (P O Box
RB2293, Rodney Bay)
Gros Islet, SAINT LUCIA
Tel: 758 458 0601
Fax: 758 458 0191
E-mail: sjoseph@cawasa.org;
cawasa@candw.lc
Website: www.cawasa.org

CAWASA Secretariat News

Training for Hotel Water Operators
During the 2014 Financial Year, the Secretariat conducted an Operators Certification Seminar for Hotel Operators and other companies with internal water
systems. The facilitators were Irwin Gill from Irwin Gill Training & Consultancy
of Trinidad & Tobago and Alphonsus Daniel from Daniel & Daniel Engineering
in Grenada.

Operator/Analyst Certification

Seventy (70) operators sat the Certification Examinations

in Water and Wastewater in March and June, respectively.
Particular congratulations go to Jefferson Durand of Dominicas DOWASCO, who did it again -- this time obtaining
Level IV certification in Water Treatment. A summary of the
results of the examinations are shown in Tables below:

Summary of Examinations Results March 2014

Several Conferences Attended

The new Executive Director Mr Ignatius Jean attended several conferences
since his appointment in July. They included the CARIBDA Conference in St
Thomas in June, followed by the Water Sector Review Validation Workshop in
July in Barbados.
He also attended The Water Expo in Miami in September, then the Caribbean
Water and Waste Water Associations annual conference in The Bahamas and
the CARPHA/UNEP CReW Rainwater Harvesting Workshop in Saint Lucia
in October.

Alternative Certification
Program Planning
There was no examination this year for the Alternative Certification Programme. However, Anguilla and Montserrat have shown interest and it is anticipated that this activity will be undertaken during the last quarter of the next
financial year (2015).

Country

No of Candidates

Barbados

Cayman Islands

Dominica

St Lucia

Trinidad & Tobago

Total

17

Jefferson Durand

Summary of Examinations Results: June 2014

Country

No of Candidates

Dominica

Grenada

15

St Lucia

15

St Vincent & the Grenadines

13

Trinidad & Tobago

Total

53

CAWASA pursued several 2014 Strategic Partnerships

The Secretariat participated in a number of activities involving strategic
partners in the region, including CaribDA, CDB, CWWA, CEHI/CARPHA,
GWP-C, GIZ and CARILEC. A summary of each follows:

The Executive Director represented CAWASA at the pre-conference workshop

and CaribDA Conference. The networking sessions allowed for the Executive Director to become acquainted with utility
leaders and suppliers.

CaribDA
CAWASA collaborated with the
CaribDA by facilitating a pre-conference Workshop on Disinfection Solutions at the CaribDA 2014 Conference
which was held in St Thomas, June 2326, 2014. Invitations were sent out to
member utilities but only one was able
to attend.
The workshop was facilitated by Mr.
David Benny, consultant engineer and
Head of Research & Development at
WASA, Trinidad and the moderator
and co-chair was Mr William Anderson
of CaribDA.

Global Water PartnershipCaribbean (GWP-C)

President Bernard Ettinoffe represented
CAWASA at the Annual General Meeting
of the Global Water Partnership-Caribbean
Chapter held in Trinidad on June 29. The
President also attended the Integrated Urban Water Management Workshop and
GWPs Consulting Partners meeting from
26-28 June 2014.
Caribbean Water & Wastewater
Association (CWWA)
The Executive Director represented
the CAWASA Secretariat at the Annual
Conference and Exhibition of the Carib-

bean Water and Wastewater Association

(CWWA) held in the Bahamas from October 6-11.
The Executive Director also attended the
Annual General Meeting of the CWWA
and the CAWASA Secretariat also had an
opportunity to promote the ABC Certification Progammes to operators of The Bahamas Water and Sewerage Corporation
(BWSC) and operators from the private
sector.
Global Water Operators
Partnership Alliance (GWOPA)
CAWASA collaborated with GWOPA to
facilitate a CariWOP workshop on Disaster Management.
As the head of the Secretariat for CariWOP, the Executive Director assisted in
arranging the workshop on Disaster Management and the 2nd CariWOP Steering
Committee Meeting which were held dur-

ing the CWWA 23rd Annual Conference held in the Bahamas on October
6-11.
German International
Development Agency (GIZ)
The Secretariat collaborated with the
GIZ in coordinating the participation
of operators in a Workshop on Water
Loss Reduction held in Germany October 13-16, 2014.
Seven operators from five member
utilities participated. They came from
Dominica, Grenada, Saint Lucia, St
Kitts and St Vincent & the Grenadines.
IMS Business Consultancy
The Secretariat collaborated with
the IMS Business Consultancy in organizing an Inventory Management
Workshop in St Lucia in October 2014.
Seventeen participants attended the
workshop.

July-December 2014

e-Source

Page 3

GWP-C and Partners Host Regional Rainwater

Harvesting Knowledge Exchange Forum
A Rainwater Harvesting (RWH)
Knowledge Exchange Forum which
took place on October 21st -23rd , 2014
in St. Lucia was hosted by the GWP-C
under its Water, Climate and Development Programme (WACDEP) in
collaboration with the Environmental
Health and Sustainable Development
Department of the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA), the
Global Environment Facility (GEF)
Amazon Project, the GEF International Waters Learning Exchange and
Resource Network (IW: LEARN) and
the Deutsche Gesellschaft fUr Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH (GIZ)
through the Caribbean Aqua-Terrestrial Solutions Programme (CATS).
The main objectives of this unique
Knowledge Exchange Forum were to:
Present practical experience and best
appropriate technology in RWH to
decision-makers from public and priNewsletter of the Caribbean Regional Fund for Wastewater
Participants at the Regional Rainwater Harvesting Knowledge Exchange Forum held in St. Lucia
vate sector.
Support targeted learning through
Management
on October 21st-23rd,
2014.
structured discussions at expert level and discuss the requirements for
Vol. 3, Issue 3
September 2014
a wide up-scaling improvement of
stakeholders from various countries
health sector, the agriculture sector,
RWH experiences from the private
RWH technologies in the Caribbean
to discuss Rainwater Harvesting. Mr.
private organisations (hotels, engisector.
and Amazon region.
Clauzel indicated that RWH was an
neering firms), government minis Water safety and RWH.
Exchange technical, scientific and sothat the Government of St. Lutries, among others.
A Caribbean Regional RWH Prothis issue
issue:
cioeconomic experience betweenInthe
cia took very seriously and saw the
The first two (2) days of the Forum
gramme -An Action Plan for a wide
Amazonian and Caribbean partners.
benefits
of safeonRWH especially in the
comprised of key presentations to
up-scaling implementation of RWH

Stakeholders
Weigh-in
Create interaction mechanisms that
Wastewater
Management
case of
natural in
disasters. He added
set the context of the workshop folsystems
allow the expansion of knowledgeGuyana (Pgs. 1,2,7)
that St. Lucia has made great
strides
lowed
by question
and answer sesPresentations spurred a lot of discusLessons
from
GEF
CReWs
Media
KAPS
concerning techniques and research
in incorporating provisions for RWH
sions which enabled participants at
sions amongst participants who raised
on RWH systems in partner coun Engaging the Media for
Journalism all
cantimes
have atosignificant
influence
in
its
National
Water
Policy.
share
their
thoughts
and
several issues such as:
Change!
(Pgs.
1,2,3,7)
tries, in order to provide decisionon the was
publics
Critical to the workshop
theenvironmental
How do you regulate individual
opinions.literacy.
Some ofAccording
the maintopresentamakers with adequate practices and
the Project
for Improved
Environmental
Toilet Dayof(Pgs.
1,8)
knowledge
and
experiencuse of RWH?
tions focused
on: Coverage
models of RWH systems that pro-Worldsharing
(PIEC)than
which
conducted
a study
in the United
States Rainwaes on RWH from the more
fifty
The need for greater political will in
An
overview
of regional
mote access to safe water supply in
Jamaicas
environmental
in 2013, several
studies have(RWH)
shown efforts
that in the
(50) new
participants
from of
theAmerica
Caribbean
support of RWH.
ter Harvesting
Amazonian and Caribbean rural arregulations spur training for
the
public
wants
better
and
more
environmental
region,
Central
America,
the
Amazon

The
need for widespread public edCaribbean
both
past
and
current
eas.
water and wastewater operanews.
basin3,and
ucation and sensitisation on RWH.
initiatives.
6) as far as the Mediterranean.
The three-day event kicked-off withtors (Pgs.
The participation of a wide-cross sec Should the water utilities subsidise
Theatclimate
outlook for
the Cariba short opening ceremony which inThe PIEC looked
the environmental
cov ofHow Can
EnvitionweofTransform
countries
brought a meaningthe cost of RWH?
bean and strategic directions for
cluded remarks by representatives
erage in the mainstream media in the USA in 2013
ronmental balance
Science, Manageand pool of knowledge
The need for a policy framework on
enhancing
water
security
and
how
the collaborating agencies hosting thement ful
and Activism into Comand found
and crime garnered 20
of Housing
and storthe
activity.
The Forum
also that
pro-entertainment
RWH PS,
in Ministry
terms of
regulation,
RWH may contribute to policy andEmil McGarrell,
event and a feature address by Mr.pellingtoand
Useful
Journaland
60
times
more
coverage
respectively
than
the
Water
addresses
participants
at
Opening
ism?
(Pgs.
4,5)
vided a platform for cross-regional
age, treatment.
fiscal challenges.
Sylvester Clauzel, Permanent Secenvironment.
This was
despite
the Water,
fact that
there and Desharing within the GWP
Network as

RWH
be Ministry
a tool inofIntegrat The
GWP-C
Climate
retary in the Ministry of Sustainable
Guyanas
Housing
On July 17th,should
Sanitation
for
Allthe
Drive
are
now
more
resources
available
on
environmental
representatives from GWP-Central
ed Water Resources Management
velopment Programme (WACDEP).
Development, Energy, Science andto 2015
(Pg. 6)
and
Water
(MHW),
hosted
and
chaired
a
Stakeholdtopics from more diverse
sources, such as academAmerica and GWP-Mediterranean
(IWRM).
Commercial-scale
RWH applicaTechnology of St. Lucia.
ers Workshop
on Wastewater
Management in
ic
institutions,
science-based
research
organizaattendedDecade
andProdelivered presenta Should
RWH be centralised?
tions (current
practices
and success
Mr. Clauzel commended the or-The UN-Water
tions,
environmental
news
services
and
projects,
Guyana.
MHW
has
oversight
over
Guyana which
Water
tions.
Participants
ranged from rep Innovative RWH systems
on Advocacy
and
stories).
gansing agencies for their initiativegramme
Communication
(UNW-DRC
than
ever
before.
resentatives from water utilities,
take into
health
concerns
RWH applications in agriculture
in putting on the unique event and
Incorporated (GWI)
whichaccount
is directly
responsible
for
Resources (Pg. 8).
nongovernmental
organisations,
with
RWH.
(Overview
of
support
initiatives
congratulated them on being sucSeveral KAPS regarding the environment the provision of water and safety of sewerage sysContinued on Page 9
academia (universities), the public
and success stories).
cessful in bringing together so many
have been conducted in the Caribbean in the past tems for improved health and sustainable develop-

CReWs Lines

Engaging the Media for

Change!

Give the Gift of

Water this Holiday

Stakeholders Weigh-in
on Wastewater
Management in Guyana

(Continued on page 2)

19
November
was
World
Toilet
Day!
19 November is World Toilet Day!
Continued on page 2)

World Toilet Day has been marked by international and civil society orThe season of giving is almost
ganizations all over the world for many years. In 2013 the United Nations (Continued from page 1)
World Toilet Day has been marked by international and civil society organizations all over
here. It is a time to be thankful
General
Assembly
formally
recognized
it as anAssembly
official UN
day and
requestthe
world
for
many years.
In 2013
the United
Nations General
formally
recognized
it as
and a time to help those in need.
ed
UN-Water,
in
consultation
with
relevant
entities
of
the
United
Nations
an
official
UN
day
and
requested
UN-Water,
in
consultation
with
relevant
entities
of
the
United
Did you know that gift certifiand urge changes in both behaviour and
system
and
in collaboration
with Governments
relevanttostakeholdNations system
and in
collaboration
with Governments
and relevantand
stakeholders,
facilitate the
cates can be purchased from the
from improving water management to e
ers, to
facilitate
the
implementation
World Toilet
Day
Sanitation
for All
. in the context of
implementation
of World
Toilet
Day
in the context ofof
Water Authority this holiday
Today, 2.5 of the world's seven
Sanitation for All.
season? Gift certificates are a
The objective of this initiative is to make sanitation for all a global development priority
The
objective
of
this
initiative
is
to
make
sanitation
for
all
a
global
develrural areas, do not have proper sanitatio
thoughtful and practical way to
opment
priority
and
urge
changes
in
both
behaviour
and
policy
on
issues
make a donation to your favoudefec
ranging from improving water management to ending open defecation.
rite charity, to give to a neighbour
(Continued on page 8) signifi
Today, 2.5 of the worlds seven billion people, mostly in rural areas, do not
or just to say thank you.
health
have proper sanitation and 1.1 billion people still defecate in the open. This
With the cost of living constanthas
significant
impacts
on
human
health,
dignity
and
security,
the
environly on the rise, a gift that can ease
enviro
www.gefcrew.org
ment, and social and eco-nomic development.
someones financial burden is
nomic
World Toilet Day in-tends to raise awareness of sani-tation issues inoften avery welcomed gift. Wacluding hygiene promotion, the provision of basic sanitation services, and
ter Authority gift certificates are
sewer-age and wastewater treatment and reuse in the context of inte-grated
available in denominations of $10,
water management and make a case for sanitation for all.
$25 and $50 and can be redeemed
tends
It intends to encourage UN Member States and relevant stakeholders,
toward the payment of Water Autation
including civil society and non-governmental organi-zations, to promote
thority water and sewerage bills.
prom
Gift certificates are valid for one
behavioural change and the implementation of policies in order to increase
year from the date of purchase
access to sanitation among the poor and end the practice of open defecasanita
and are avaiable from the Water
tion. From UN Waters World Toilet Day site: http://www.unwater.org/
age a
Authority offices.
worldtoiletday

and re
grated water management and make a

Page 4

e-Source

July-December 2014

Reduced OECS water supply due

to Pollution and Climate Change
Region urged to cooperate to address impacts
of Climate Change on water resources
Saint Lucias Minister for Sustainable Development, Energy, Science
and Technology, Senator Dr. James
Fletcher, has cautioned that there are
dire consequences should the islands
water supply reach critical mass. He
has therefore advised that citizens of
Saint Lucia and other OECS island
states should cooperate to prepare for
the present and future repercussions
of Climate Change.
This is going to be our reality from
now on, he said. This is something
we have to live with due to Climate
Change: reduced water availability,
more intense droughts, and more frequent and severe weather events. So
we have to prepare. This is all the
more reason for us to protect the quality and integrity of our water sources.
The gravity of Saint Lucias reduced
water availability was made prominent five years ago in a 2009 Paper on
Climate Change and the Water Sector.

The paper discussed the availability

of general as well as potable water
sources and the causes of Saint Lucias dwindling supply.
The present water demand is exceeding the available supply. An
increase in future demand can only
serve to exacerbate this deficit, the
report stated.
The islands current water supply
stems from surface sources in rivers,
wetlands, streams and springs, and
few groundwater sources.
There are 37 main sources of surface
run-off, but these surface water catchments, the report stated, are relatively
small, with steep slopes on which
run-off occurs fairly rapidly.
In addition, surface water yields for
potable purposes are inconsistent,
due to increased abstraction, and soil
and chemical contamination.
The four major potable water supply systems are located at the Roseau

Dam and Hill 20 in the north, and

Grace and Beausejour in the south.
The potable water supply has been
severely affected by pressures of increased demand, the destruction of
upper watersheds, and the increasing exploitation of Saint Lucias rivers
and wetlands, the report stated.
Following a visit to the John Compton Dam earlier this year, Dr. Fletcher
remarked briefly on the financial consequences of a water related emergency. Importing water, he said, would

be a worst case scenario.

Saint Lucias water cost is $12.21 per
gallon. Dominicas is $15 before it is exported, he said. Dominica will charge
us $15 before it gets on the barge. The
cost of that water even before it gets on
a barge is already prohibitive.
Saint Lucia declared a water-related
emergency in March of this year due
to drought conditions. Those conditions intensified and experts predict
that the island could continue in
drought conditions until August.

Caribbean was well-represented at German Water-loss Reduction Workshop

A Water loss Reduction Train
took place in Hamburg, Germany
from October 13th to October 16th,
2014 -- and was well represented
by the Caribbean.
The training took place in the
frame of the strategic alliance between the German International
Cooperation (Deutsche Gesellschaft
fur International Zusammenarbeit
GmbH (GIZ), the companies VAGArmaturen, Sewerin and Hamburg Wasser, with the support of
University of Applied Sciences and
Arts Northwestern Switzerland
(FHNW) and the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT).
There were 25 registered participants from St. Lucia, Dominica, St.
Kitts and Nevis, St. Vincent and

The training group in Germany

the Grenadines, Grenada, Jamaica,
Guyana, Kosovo, Germany, Palestine,
France and Uganda.
The Facilitators/Trainers were: Mr.

Emmanuel Oertle (FHNW), Mr. Andreas Kamphues (CAH), Mr. Micheal

Kersting, Lucatina Ercolano and Ms
Deepa Vethaviyasar.

The main subjects discussed at the

training were: Introduction to waterloss reduction and key influencing
factors, calculating a water balance,
integrated perspective to water utilities, District-metered areas, Introduction to methods and instruments
for water loss reduction, Leakage detection, Organization and documentation in leakage repair, Information
systems for water-loss management
and Pressure management.
The subjects were covered over
four days by presentations from
trainers and group exercises which
allowed participants to share ideas
and to grasp the training concepts.
Each group was allowed to present to the general group, to receive
feedback and suggestions.

OECS Water sector personnel receive training in Climate Change adaptation

In an effort to effectively manage
the effects of extreme weather and
natural disasters, the Organization
of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS)
along with USAID, provided climaterelated training to water sector personnel in the member-states of the
island grouping.
The training held in Saint Lucia
-- will strengthen national capacity to
hanmdle water problems.
In Saint Lucias case, the islands
water company WASCO will benefit from improved resource capacity
and the training will also improve the
companys network management and
service delivery.
For almost two years, the OECS Secretariat has been assisting WASCO in
improving its efficiency via computer-based mapping technology and
personnel training.
David Popo, from the OECS Commissions Social Sustainable Development Division, said the workshop
was integral because of Saint Lucias
dependence on fresh water sources.
The RRACC project (Reducing Risk
to Human and Natural Assets Resulting from Climate Change) carries out
climate change adaptation actions,

Participants in the OECS raining exercise have been applying the newly-acquired information to their daily
tasks related to Climate Change adaptation since the three-day workshop in Castries.
especially within productive sectors
like tourism and agriculture with a
focus on fresh water and coastal resources, Mr. Popo said.
He added, In this regard, the project builds an enabling environment in
support of policies and legislation to
reduce vulnerability.
The Strategic Planning Information
Officer for WASCO, Nikolai Hya-

cinth, said the workshop was essential to properly manage the islands
water systems.
I do hope that the workshops results
will make the water sector in Saint Lucia a more cohesive unit, thereby making us more resilient to disasters in
their extremes of drought or flood.
The workshop on Hydro-Climatic
Disasters in Integrated Water Re-

sources Management ran from July

8-10 in Castries and since then participants have been applying their related skills according to the new information and methodologies that came
out of the training.
In addition to water personnel, various government agencies working in
water resources management were
also beneficiaries of the workshop.

e-Source

July-December 2014

Page 5

Caribbean diplomats warn of real and ruinous

impacts of Climate Change
The regions ambassador told the United Nations that indifference,
narrow interests and electoral cowardice threaten to squander
our only real chance to save the planet.

Foreign Minister
Nickolas Steele of Grenada

Foreign Minister
Camillo Gonsalves of St
Vincent and the Grenadines

Spotlighting the gathering and

intensifying threat of global climate change leaders from Caribbean Islands warned the 2014
United Nations General Assembly
that indifference, narrow interests
and electoral cowardice threaten
to squander our only real chance
to save the planet.
Addressing the Assembly, minister for foreign affairs for Grenada, Nickolas Steele, said climate
shocks are amongst the most terrifying for his country and other
small islands around the world
and given such risks, island states
need concessionary financing.
The indebtedness of small islands developing states (SIDS)
must be regarded among the
many challenges of our time, he
said, adding that the annual cry
of small islands to make concessionary funding available should
serve as an early warning system
for the international community.
Let us settle the LDC [least developed country] graduation issue in
favour of SIDS rather than use it as
a parallel climate-negotiating tool
against SIDS, Steele said.
Due to high import costs of fossil
fuels, electricity in Grenada costs
four to five times higher than in
developed countries. He said Grenada cannot educate its people, if
its school children have no access
to electricity. Islands like Grenada
come to the climate table, not
like hapless victims with cap-inhand.Renewables must be implemented in the Islands with zero
subsidies.
Minister of foreign affairs of St
Vincent and the Grenadines, Camillo Gonsalves, said that, despite
a tiny carbon footprint and miniscule emissions, his island has been
victimised by weather anomalies
partially caused by the environmental abuse of major emitters.

Foreign Minister of St Kitts

and Nevis, Patrice Nisbett

The prospects of genuine progress against climate change become increasingly remote with
each passing day of diplomatic
dithering, buck-passing and finger-pointing, said Gonsalves.
Yet, despite the gathering and intensifying global threat of climate
change, with its real and ruinous
present-day impacts, historical
and major emitters continue to act
as the planet has time on its side,
he continued, adding that if narrow interests and local electoral
cowardice force us to retreat behind our national borders and
bury our heads in the sands, we
may squander a decade of effort,
and our only real chance to save
the planet upon which we live.
The stakes are that high. We cannot afford to fail.
The UNs 2014 Climate Summit, held at UN Headquarters,
was an admirable attempt but
the tangible results were less than
encouraging. The numbers just
dont add up to anything close
to what is required to cap global
warming at 1.5 degrees above preindustrial levels.
Further, the new resources
raised and pledged for the financing of adaptation to climate
changes effects were a drop in the
bucket akin to having a bake
sale to settle national debt.
Post-2015 goals and indicators
must focus equally on targets
within developing countries. A
major shortcoming of the MDGs
was the nebulous nature of the
so-called Global Partnership for
Development. New goals must be
concrete and measurable.
The minister of foreign affairs
of St Kitts and Nevis, Patrice Nisbett, said SIDS were susceptible
to economic and environmental
shocks, which resulted in high
indebtedness.

Foreign Minister
Wilfred Elrington of Belize

While St Kitts and Nevis has successfully reduced its debt to GDP
[gross domestic product] ratio by
50 percentage points, it remains
mindful that severe climate events
can erase gains achieved. He
called on the international community, including international
financial institutions to broaden
the scope of assessment of SIDS,
in order to avoid the creation of
measures that undermine national
governments.
He reiterated his call for a strong
global response to combating the
high rate of non-communicable
diseases in developing countries
in particular saying that a nations wealth lies in the health of
its people.
Climate change remains more
than an environmental concern
for SIDS, it is regarded as a threat
to our existence, he said. The international community must take
creative initiative such as debt
swap for climate adaptation and
mitigation. Climate change financing and technology transfer will
be pivotal to that end.
The minister of foreign affairs of
Belize, Wilfred Elrington, also said
small countries like his own are
disadvantaged by the lack of resources and human, financial and
technological capacities, which are
only compounded by the increasing effects of climate change.
Belize welcomes the UN multilateral legal framework of debt
restructuring and hopes it will
lead to a robust treaty that will increase the efficiency, stability and
predictability of the international
financial system. Following the
2008 financial meltdown, there
have been unmistakable and
troubling indicia of donor fatigue
and a tendency towards isolationism, he said.
Climate change is the biggest

Foreign Minister
Samuel Santos Lpez
of Nicaragua

threat to the Central American

nation. Horrendous devastation is already occurring around
the world caused by extreme
droughts, intense rainfalls, floods,
and hurricanes. Belize is now witnessing its share of climate change
effects including coral bleaching,
coastal erosion and flooding, and
it is forecasted that next year the
entire country will be visited by
severe drought.
Nicaraguan Foreign Minister
Samuel Santos Lpez stressed
the need to draw up a Post-2015
Agenda for Sustainable Development that embodies a just world
order for inclusive growth that
also takes measures to counter the
threats of climate change.
We find ourselves in a world
fraught with many interrelated
crises where unjust and unequal
development between nations
and peoples takes first place. The
current unjust economic order, the
product of imperialism and the
present model of capitalism, has
been unable to address these crises that are growing ever more frequent and serious, he declared.
Every day the number of poor
people in the world grows greater,
both in the south and in the north,
in flagrant violation of their most
elemental human rights. We must
work in unity to overcome these
crises and in the shortest time possible eliminate poverty, hunger,
malnutrition, diseases, wars and
conflicts, and the policies of regime change and coups dtat.
These efforts must also eradicated violence against women
and children, the negative impact
of climate change, and such social scourges as slavery and drug
and human trafficking, but the
eradication of poverty remains
the greatest challenge facing the
world, Santos added.

Page 6

e-Source

Whos the new CAWASA

Executive Director?

Ignatius Jean:
A man of regional
public service

The new Executive

Director, Mr Ignatius
Jean, is a Saint Lucianborn Caribbean man
who brings to the position a wealth of experience in administrative
and technical fields
and as a policy maker.
He joined the Caribbean Water and Sewerage Association Inc.
(CAWASA) in May
2014 with a long a rich
history of public service national and regional levels and has
served in several Caribbean capitals in different positions, with
much exposure to the
international community.
Mr Jeans educational background saw
him complete his secondary education at
St. Marys College in
Saint Lucia, following
which he commenced
agricultural training
at the Morne Technical
College (Union School
of Agriculture) and
completed a Diploma
in Agriculture from
the Guyana School of
Agriculture. He also
holds a Post Graduate
Diploma in Agricultural Economics and
Masters Degree in Agricultural Management
from the University of
Reading, England.
The new CAWASA
ED also pursued several other courses including: Certificate in Business Administration
(UWI School of Continuing Studies), Certificate in Risk Management
(Insurance
Institute of America),
Certificate in Development Diplomacy (Diplo Foundation, Malta),
Certificate in Applied
Project Management
(Project Management
Global Institute/Boston University Corporate Education Centre)
Executive
Management and Leadership
(Central
American
Business School IN-

CAE).
Mr Jean also has
broad experience in
technical cooperation
projects, agricultural
extension and agricultural risk and insurance, teamwork and
group dynamics.
His
policy
background includes being
an elected Member of
Parliament (MP), Minister of Agriculture,
Forestry and Fisheries
and also Minister of
Physical Planning, Environment and Housing in Saint Lucia.
During his tenure as
Minister for Agriculture, he was Chairman
of the CARDI Board of
Governors.
Mr Jean was employed by the InterAmerican Institute for
Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) in June
2007 and served as the
IICA Representative
in Guyana (June 2007
January 2012) and Jamaica (February 2012
December 2013).
He was appointed the
Government of Saint
Lucias director on the
Board of the Eastern
Caribbean
Telecommunications Authority (ECTEL) in January
2014 and is the current
Chairman of the Board.
In July 2014, Mr Jean
was also appointed the
Chairman of the Development Control Authority (DCA) in Saint
Lucia. He is married to
Dr Jeanice Stanley.

July-December 2014

I want to see
Caribbean
people better
understand the
value of water!
Exclusive interview with Mr. Ignatius
Jean, Executive Director of the
Caribbean Water and Sewage
Association (CAWASA)
Q: Youve been the new Executive Director of CAWASA for a few months now.
How has the settling-in period been?
A: During the transitioning period,
weve been looking at the various water
challenges facing our Caribbean region,
from the standpoint of both the historical and actual challenges. Ive met with
our (CAWASA) Directors, as well as with
several of our regional and national affiliates. Weve been looking at issues like
Climate Change and Desalination and
weve had some very interesting revelations from a recent CDB Validation
Workshop that will be shared with our
stakeholders across the region.
Q: How do you see the Caribbeans water situation? Are governments and people waking-up to the reality that if we
dont save and conserve, we can eventually lose the resource?
A: There is some growing awareness.
Climate Change is getting blamed for a
lot that we do, but were starting to better
understand. The 2010 Caribbean Drought
affected us all across the region, one
way or another. The Christmas Eve 2013
Trough also affected Dominica, Saint Lucia and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
Saint Lucias water-related emergency
(implemented several months ago) has
resulted in a greater level of awareness
-- and the same can be said elsewhere.
But unfortunately, so far weve mainly
been giving knee-jerk responses. When
theres a drought, we cry for water; when
its rainy, we beg for sunshine. But we
need to be conscious all the time and not
only at times. So, governments are starting to move to do what they have to: replacing old infrastructure with new, etc.
The water sector spends over 40% of its
revenues on energy. With such high costs
of energy, the sector is looking to become
more energy-efficient through options

such as energy conservation and renewable energy. CARICOM States have a

strategic relationship with Germanys International Development Agency (GIZ)
to help better respond to environmental
challenges, including Water and Climate
Change. The main concern in Saint Lucia,
for example, is to get the national water
company (WASCO) to reduce its level
of non-revenue water, which is costing
so very much through things like leaks,
broken pipes and illegal connections.
The GIZ has started a pilot programme
to assist WASCO reduce its non-revenue
water. We are collaborating with the GIZ
in extending this pilot program to other
countries in the Region. As part of the

Climate Change is getting blamed for a lot that

we do, but were starting
to better understand
program, we have mobilized personnel from eight countries to participate in
training in non-revenue water in Hamburg. Were also looking at collaborating
with the OECS Commission to promote
the harmonization the OECS Water Sector Policy and draft legislation. For example, Saint Lucia already has a Water
Resource Management Agency (WRMA)
and a National Water and Sewerage
Commission (NWSC), but several other
countries dont have similar entities. We
at CAWASA will be seeking to promote
the level of harmonization needed to
better coordinate more effectively. We
also looked at those matters at the Caribbean Water and Wastewater Association
(CWWA) Annual General meeting in the
Bahamas in October.
Continued on Page 7

July-December 2014

Page 7

e-Source

I want to see Caribbean people better

understand the value of water!

The new CAWASA Executive Director, Ignatius Jean (at right) hit the road running after his appointment in July. He attended and represented
CAWASA and its member-utilities at several high level meetings of Caribbean and global water associates, in the region and beyond. Here hes
seen with two of the many other top water representatives from around the world who attended the recent 2014 World Water Expo in Miami,
where he also spoke on behalf of Caribbean Water.
Continued from Page 6

Q: CAWASAs membership is far and wide. To what extent is there the

level of coordination thats needed to ensure active cooperation across
the skies and waters?
A: Our mandate as a secretariat is to coordinate cooperation among
our members towards a path of sustainable growth and development.
A core function is to administer a programme involving classification
of water utilities and training and certification of water operators and
allied personnel. We are the authorized providers of the Association of
Boards of Certification (ABC) accreditation in the Caribbean. We also
facilitate cooperation among our membership within the region and
globally through our association with partners, such as the CWWA,
the Caribbean Water Operators Partnerships (Cari-WOP), the Water
Operators Partnerships of Latin America and the Caribbean (WOPLAC), under the umbrella of the UN Habitats Global Water Operators
Partnerships Alliance (GWOPA), United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP), and the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA).
Q: Whats your view on Privatization of Water?
A: Theres room for it. Water is a right, but its not free except when
in a river. We prefer to pay more for bottled water than the regular rates
for our local water because we dont even check what it costs to deliver
drinking water to our homes. Theres room for privatization, but theres
also much room too for the State and the Private Sector to engage in
joint public and private partnerships.
Q: Bottled water versus Tap Water Do they threaten or complement
each other?
A: Theres no threat. Bottled water depends on marketing, so the beverage companies have exploited and opportunity to make use of its
commercial possibilities. Weve bought into the idea that bottled water
is safer than tap water. What we dont realize is that the big bottled
water companies buy water from the same local company as us. They
have adorned the tap water in creative packaging, in some cases, as
pristine spring water and sold at an exorbitant price. Its a combination
of convenience and competitive marketing. Bottled water companies
will never take the place of water utilities in providing water at affordable rates for household, commercial and industrial needs.
Q: To what extent is Desalination a viable Caribbean alternative?
A: The main observation regarding Desalination is related to energy
cost. Some can pay and others simply cant afford. Of course, there are
other considerations such as impact on the environment and the management of brine from processing sea water. Another observation is that

the water scarce countries -- particularly in the northern Caribbean

-- appear to be more drought proof because of desalination systems.
Desalination is an option, but not a panacea. The water abundant territories should also consider water conservation and increased storage.
Q: What were the main issues coming out of the recent Caribbean Water and Wastewater Association AGM in the Bahamas?
A: He hopes that an MOU could be signed between the Caribbean
and the Pacific during the World Water Forum in South Korea in April,
2015. Through the Global Water Operators Partnership Alliance (GWOPA) at the World Water Forum in South Korea in 2015, we hope to sign
a cooperation agreement between CWWA/CAWASA and the Pacific
Water and Waste Association (PWWA). The Germans and the American Water Works Association (AWWA) pushed for us to make a presentation at meetings ahead of that meeting next year. The annual meeting of the CWWA, which was held in the Bahamas this year, brings top
water operators together, as well as a High Level Forum of Ministers
responsible for water. This year there were 12 Ministers from CARICOM countries -- and it was the first time there were so many. At that
Bahamas meeting, resolutions were passed and sent to the CARICOM
Secretariat calling on the regions governments to give water a greater
level of attention, given Climate Change and the need for greater levels
of importance to address water issues directly today. The meeting also
adopted whats called The SAMOA Pathway referring SIDS (Small
Island Developing States) Accelerated Modalities of Action (Post 2015
Development Agenda). This was considered the most key outcome of
the whole conference.
Q: World Water Day is celebrated annually by the UN, but its up to
member-states and water utilities to decide how. Does CAWASA have
a role in regional coordination?
A: Each utility and each country normally gets involved in World Water Day observances in one way or another. CAWASA does not take the
leading role, but coming in March each year allows us to be able to use
it to push harder to promote how we can do better to appreciate water
generally throughout the year. We really need to increase our conversations on water and CAWASA is willing to help members coordinate
World Water Day if asked. But the best coordination would be to do it
regionally.
Q: Where would you like to take CAWASA? Whats your vision and
what legacy do you want to leave?
A: I want to ensure we better communicate the value of water to our
citizens across the region, so they can better understand and value water than they do now.

e-Source

Page 8

July-December 2014

Engaging the Media

for Change!
Lessons from GEF CReWs Media KAPS
Journalism can have a significant influence on the publics environmental
literacy. According to the Project for
Improved Environmental Coverage
(PIEC) which conducted a study in
the United States of America in 2013,
several studies have shown that the
public wants better and more environmental news.
The PIEC looked at the environmental cov-erage in the mainstream media in the USA in 2013 and found that
entertainment and crime garnered 20
and 60 times more coverage respectively than the environment. This was
despite the fact that there are now
more resources available on environmental topics from more diverse
sources, such as academ-ic institutions, science-based research organiza-tions, environmental news services and projects, than ever before.
Several KAPS regarding the environment have been conducted in the Caribbean in the past decade by various
environmental projects. They have
found that radio and television, in
particular, are the main sources from
which the public obtain information
about the environment or environmental issues. Newspapers are also
significant sources but remain less important than radio and television.
The media is sometimes accused of
being inaccurate, sen-sationalist, not
correcting mistakes, having a short
attention-span and not covering all
important issues. Yet journalists face
many chal-lenges in covering environmental issues. The purpose of a
KAPS of the media conducted by the
GEF CReW Project in 2013 was to explore the knowledge, attitudes and
practices of the media in the re-gion to
wastewater management, and to better understand how the media in the
region values, perceives, and behaves
in relation to wastewater and the environment in general.

Approach and Methodology

The GEF CReW Project hosted two

regional media sensiti-zation workshops on wastewater for journalists
between November 2013 and July
2014. The first was for journalists from
its English-speaking countries and
Suriname (referred to as the Caribbean jour-nalists) that took place in
Georgetown, Guyana in November
2013. The second was for journalists
from its Spanish-speaking countries
(referred to as the Central American
journalists) that took place in Ciudad
del Saber, Panama in July 2014. A total

of 42 journalists and media personnel

participated in these workshops which
aimed pri-marily to deepen the knowledge and expertise of environmental
jour-nalists on wastewater issues and
management in the Wider Caribbe-an
Region. This is part of the Projects effort to increase media cov-erage about
wastewater and related issues.
At both work-shops a KAPS question-naire was distributed and completed by partic-ipants before presenta-tions and discussions began. This
was meant to ensure that knowledge
and attitudes were not influenced by
the new knowledge that they were
about to be exposed to. The survey
used both a quantitative and qualitative approach. The questionnaire
contained both closed-ended and
open-ended questions. It included
questions that were designed to capture information on the respondents
knowledge, attitudes and prac-tices
with respect to wastewater and environmental issues in gen-eral.
In addition to completing the questionnaire, both workshops included
facilitated sessions designed to obtain
additional feedback from the participants with the aim of improving the
projects effective-ness in providing
them with useful resources and assistance. Some of the questions posed
to the participants in these sessions
were useful in corroborating some of
the information reported in the KAPS.

Key Findings of the Media KAPS:

Of those surveyed, more of the

Central American journalists had
focused on environmental coverage previously than was the case
among their Caribbean counterparts who were more often generalists with some experience in environmental coverage.
A relatively low percentage of respondents (36% and 30%) rec-ognized that untreated wastewater is
a threat to every sector named. This
is indicative of poor awareness of
linkages and of how pervasive the
negative effects of poor wastewater
manage-ment are.
In both groups, perceptions of levels
of wastewater treatment existing in
their countries were close to reality
(that is: between 5% and 30%)
Significantly, very few respondents
thought that the media is regularly a source of information about
wastewater issues.
Both Caribbean and Central American journalists expressed pos-itive

Journalists complete KAPS, Caribbean Workshop, November 2014

attitudes towards wanting to learn
more and understand environmental and wastewater issues better.
The vast majority of the Caribbean
journalists (93%) and all of the Central American journalists felt that
they had a role in shap-ing and/
or changing peoples perception of
wastewater.
The majority (57%) of journalists in
both groups reported that they occasionally write about environmental and wastewater management
issues. More of the Central American journalists (36% vs. 28.5%) reported that they write about these
issues fre-quently.
In looking for stories they consider
human interest, public good and
educational value ahead of revelation and sensationalism.
Interviews are the preferred sources
of information and the inter-net,
institutional and project reports as
well as scientific reports were also
most desirable.
There was general agreement on the
greatest barriers to effec-tive media
coverage: Lack of information that
is easily under-stood by the public;
a general lack of information; lack
of interest and support by media
houses and editors, and; lack of
clear messages.
Knowledge gained from the survey
will help the GEF CReW Project to
develop better resources and messages for regional media as well as
inform the development of the GEF
CReW replication strat-egy and future wastewater projects.
Perhaps the findings of the KAPS
which have the greatest implications
for our approach to the media are:

Interviews are preferred

sources of information for
journalists.

Members of the regional media often have poor awareness of linkages and of the pervasiveness of
negative effects of poor wastewater
management even though they are
generally aware that the majority of
wastewater receives no treatment
at all. They also recognize that the
media is not a regular source of
information about these issues but
believe they have an im-portant
role to play in shaping or changing
the way people per-ceive wastewater. This willingness is a good start
in our interac-tion with them but
we need to be prepared to support
them and to ourselves follow-up in
order to assure better coverage.
Environmental news is not a priority
for media outlets, as confirmed by
the experiences of these journalists.
This means that if environmental
projects and programmes want to
reach their audiences, more creative
and collaborative approaches are
needed, particularly in approaching editors and decision makers in
the media. Relying on the automatic dissemination of media releases
by media houses for the public
good is inadequate if we want our
messages to go further.
Journalists are most interested in
stories which are of hu-man interest, focus on public good and are
of educational value. Environmental and wastewater issues, which
affect every-one, have all of these
qualities. We need to begin framing our issues from the perspectives of ordinary people in order
to help journalists identify story
angles that will get their audiences
at-tention.

July-December 2014

Page 9

e-Source

Member Utilities News

Scholarship Recipient to Pursue Chemistry in UK

In todays economic climate many
companies are having to cut back on
spending, and the Water Authority is no ex-ception. However, one
area where the Authority believes it
must continue to invest in is the development of Caymans youth. The
Water Authority is proud to once
again grant a scholarship to a young
Cay-manian, Chynna Retumban.
Chynna graduated from St. Ignatius Catholic School in 2012
with four GCSE, five IGCSE and
returned there to complete Sixth
Form. Chynna was accepted at several uni-versities in the UK, and has
chosen the University of Brad-ford
where she will major in Chemistry

with a minor in Drug Discovery.

Chynna states that she has always
been curious about how things work
and has de-veloped her analytic skills
over the years at school.She looks forward to returning home after completing her degree to work in the
Author-itywhereshecouldimproveon
existing systems of scien-tific operations.She envisions research to be a
key compo-nent of her role.
She is also keen to give back to the
community, whether it is by working with children to develop in the
sciences or by research and development hopefully re-sulting in innovation and im-provements in the local
and regional environment.

Fulfilling a Mandate to Supply all

Residents with Piped Water
The Water Authority con-tinues to
fulfil its mandate to ensure that all
residents have access to adequate
supplies of clean, potable water. In
the current eco-nomic climate where
the Cayman Islands Government is
tightening its belt, Water Authority
is doing more with fewer resources
without compromising on its obligation to produce affordable, high quality drinking water for all.
In September, Water Au-thority
crews completed the pipeline upgrade
along South Sound Road replacing an
aging 6-inch pipeline in-stalled in the
late 1980s that had become insuffi-

cient to deliver water efficiently and

reliably to the increasing number of
large develop-ments in the area.
Similarly, on Cayman Brac, Water
Authority teams are expanding the
limited pipe-line network there.
By late August 2014 the Authority had completed the installation of
pipelines along Gerrard Smith Ave,
includ-ing its side roads, and had
complet-ed the upgrade of the existing pipe-line along the south coast.
This project, which was started in
November 2013, is part of the Water Authoritys ten-year capital plan
to ex-pand its water infrastructure

From left: Retumban, Dr. Frederick-van Genderen (WAC),

Chynna Retumban, Mrs. Retumban, Pat Bell (WAC)
on Cayman Brac. Over the next few
years the Water Authority will invest
heavily in Cayman Brac in order to
ensure continued reliable water service to its custom-ers. In November
2014, works will commence work
on the pipeline extension along the
North Coast.
In the aftermath of Hurri-cane Paloma in late 2008 it became evident
that im-proved emergency power
generation is critical to con-tinuity
of the Authoritys Cayman Brac operations. The Water Authority will
soon commission an emergency
stand-by generator that will ensure
that both water pro-duction and distri-bution can contin-ue at the West
End Water Works in the aftermath
of a hurricane.
Later this year a 60,000 US gallons

per day container-ised RO plant will

be com-missioned to ensure that adequate water production capacity
will be available to meet growing
demand.

Montserrat Utilities has a new Managing Director

Montserrat Utilities Limited has a
new boss. The company announced
the appointment of Mr. David Thomson to the position of Managing Director of Montserrat Utilities Limited
(MUL) since 1st September 2014.
Mr. Thomsons appointment is for
a period of two years and the company looks forward to his contribution to the development of Montserrat Utilities Limited, working
together with the Government for
the people of Montserrat.
Mr. Thomson brings a wealth of
experience as a civil engineer, having worked in a number of local
government authorities in the Unit-

ed Kingdom before spending two

years on Saint Helena, a remote volcanic island in the South Atlantic,
with a population of about 4,000.
He managed the water and electricity authorities as well as the infrastructure of roads and buildings
for the government of St. Helena
and one of his jobs there was to
divest the utilities away from government and set up a private sector
company to provide these services.
He is joined on Montserrat by his
partner Jane. They left behind their
families in the UK and are both
looking forward to setting up home
on Montserrat.

Asked why he choose Montserrat and Montserrat Utilities,

Mr Thomson replied, I came
here in July for a short visit
and immediately felt relaxed
with the people and enchanted by the beauty of the island.
Im looking forward to working with the Board of Directors
and staff at Montserrat Utilities
Limited.
I appreciate there is a job to do in
terms of generating and distributing electricity efficiently and safely,
and in terms of delivering clean and
safe water, and Im looking forward
to getting started.

Mr David Thomson is the new

Managing Director of Montserrat
Utilities Limited (MUL)

GWP-C and Partners Host Regional Rainwater Harvesting Knowledge Exchange Forum
Continued from Page 3
Representatives from Grenada,
the United States Virgin Islands,
the Amazon Basin, Central America and the Mediterranean were
able to deliver presentations giving
regional experiences on RWH looking specifically at driving issues
for investments, achievements and
challenges. Another very important
aspect of the Forum was capturing
participants ideas and discussions
on actions to make the existing Caribbean Regional Rainwater Harvesting (RWH) Programme more
effective in the areas of:

1. Awareness Raising
2. Capacity Building
3. Legislative and Policy Formulation
4. Infrastructural Development
A wealth of information was received from participants which has
been collated by the GWP-C and will
be used to contribute to the strengthening of the existing RWH Programme for the Caribbean.
Knowledge sharing was the driving force of the Forum which also
explored the possible formulation of
a RWH Partnership or Network or a
Community of Practice. Stakeholders
at the Forum agreed that it would be

ideal for one organisation to take the

lead on this and share information
with other organisations.
Dr. Natalie Boodram, Programme
Manager of the GWP-C Water, Climate and Development Programme
(WACDEP) shared with participants
that GWP-C under its WACDEP has
developed a Caribbean Water and
Climate Knowledge Platform which
would be a good tool/resource to
share knowledge and continue the
dialogue on Rainwater Harvesting
and related topics. She explained to
participants that a Rainwater Harvesting page had been created espe-

cially for the Forum as a space for

discussions to continue.
On the third and final day of
the workshop, participants were
taken on a guided field trip where
they were able to see real-life examples of small-scale and commercial-scale RWH installations
in households, a school, a health
centre and a hotel. It was a fruitful
experience for the diverse group
who were able to share differences and similarities in the systems
when compared to installations
in their respective countries and
how the systems are used.

Page 10

e-Source

De-silting of Sir John Compton

Roseau Dam to start in 2015

July-December 2014

Bahamas hosts largest gathering

ever of Caribbean Water Ministers!
Eleven Ministers commit to better sell Water
to their Cabinets...
Continued from page 1

Accumulated debris and lack of adequate maintenance over several

years resulted in serious siltation of the Roseau Dam, the islands
largest, forcing the government to embark on emergency measures to
secure the islands water supply.
The Water and Sewage Company
(WASCO) is now one step closer to the
start in its plan to de-silt and rehabilitate the John Compton Dam.
Aly Anthony, Senior Manager of
Utilities Services, Planning and Design
at WASCO, said proposals to address
siltation at the John Compton Dam
have been submitted to the Caribbean
Development Bank for review and approval.
Following approval, a survey and
analysis that will dictate the progression of the de-silting process will begin.
The study will look at the problem
we are experiencing at the dam at a holistic level, Anthony said.
He added, This includes the catchment, the dam structure, the problem
with de-silting, and even the socioeconomic impact of the project on the
Millet and Vannard communities.
In essence, the study will inform the
next stage of operations.
The study will also determine the
depth, and analyze the chemical composition of the silt for disposal purposes.
The silt may contain heavy metal contaminants or hydrocarbons from road
runoff, Anthony explained, which are
hazardous and therefore cannot be
spread to land without remedy.
De-silting of the dam is slated to begin next year.
Meanwhile, WASCO has already en-

gaged key stakeholders in a consultation on the de-silting and Rehabilitation study, which allowed stakeholders
to provide input into the preparation
of the de-silting project.
Chairman of WASCO, Egbert Louis,
said the study takes into account several variables.
He also said Phase One involves the
preparation of a de-silting project.
The first phase also assesses the impacts of the proposed solutions on the
environment and surrounding communities, while the road network and
the dam structure will be comprehensively analyzed during this study.
One of the main outputs of Phase
One will be a document which will
prescribe a plan for addressing the desilting of the dam.
The study will be undertaken by the
Canadian firm Golder Associates in cooperation with local firms.
Golder Associates representative, Dr.
Michael Bender, highlighted the objective of the study, saying: We intend to
work closely with WASCO to develop
a comprehensive plan.
He also said The plan will achieve
three things. It aims to restore the reliability of the water supply; to do that
in an economically viable way; and to
do it in an environmental and sociable
way.
The first phase of the project commenced at the end of September.

Mexico supports Southern

Water Redevelopment Project
in Saint Lucia
Saint Lucias Water and Sewage
Company (WASCO) has embarked
on a Southern Water Redevelopment Project aimed at improving
the service provided to residents
worst affected during the passage
of Hurricane Tomas in October
2010.
WASCOs Utility Services Planning and Design Manager Ally Anthony said it follows a consultancy
on improving water delivery for
the South of the island.
This is spearheaded by the
Water Sector Reform Unit from
the Ministry of Economic Affairs
and what it entails is how best to
redevelop the entire water system for the south, which includes
Dennery, Vieux-Fort and environs, Anthony said.
The consultancy received grant
funding from Mexico for the

Dennery region, following recommendations.

Meanwhile, some water contamination in Desruisseaux occurred in
September.
According to Anthony, We had
to shut down and disinfect our entire system flush, disinfect and
flush, until we got quality we could
have been distributed to customers.
This cost the company a lot in
terms of not being able to provide
the quality of service that we would
have wanted to; and in terms of the
trucking that we had to do in order
to provide the community with
water.
He also re-emphasized WASCOs
thrust to improve water quality,
particularly rural systems worst
affected by Tomas, the effect of
which continue to be felt in some
areas three years later.

the Commonwealth of Dominica;

Senator The Honourable Simon Stiell,
Minister of Agriculture of Grenada;
The Honourable Robert Pickersgill,
Minister of Water, Land, Environment and Climate Change of Jamaica;
The Honourable Paul Lewis, Minister of Communications, Works, Energy and Labour of Montserrat; The
Honourable Troy Liburd; Minister of
Works and Communications of Nevis;
Senator The Honourable Dr. James L.
Fletcher, Minister of Public Service, Information, Broadcasting, Sustainable
Development, Energy, Science and
Technology of St. Lucia; Senator the
Honourable Ganga Singh, Minister of
Environment and Water Resources of
Trinidad and Tobago; and The Honourable George Lightbourne, Minister
of Government Support Services of
the Turks and Caicos Islands. Senior
government officials were also present representing the Cayman Islands,
St. Kitts and Nevis and Trinidad and
Tobago.
In looking back at the past High Level Forums, the CWWA and the GWPC were keen on improving the format
of the 10th Forum to ensure greater
engagement of Ministers in discussions and more importantly, critically
exploring a practical mechanism for
follow-up after the Forum.
The theme of the 10th HLF was Caribbean Water Security -Risks and Opportunities. Some of the main topics
and discussion sessions at the Meeting
were:
Opportunities and Risks in Securing Water Security in the Caribbean
Feedback on the Third International
Conference on Small Island Developing States held in Samoa (The
Way Forward for SIDS in terms of
water management)
Financing Challenges in the Water
Sector
Regional Initiatives on Water,
Wastewater and Climate Change
Following a brief opening ceremony,
discussions at the Forum began with
a feature presentation on Leadership
for Water Security by Mr. Wouter T.
Lincklaen Arriens, a Technical Committee Member of the Global Water
Partnership (GWP). His presentation
looked at methodologies for assessing water security and strategies to
increase water security drawing on
his work with the Asian Development
Bank, as well as, his participation in
the Global Technical Committee of the
GWP. His presentation sparked a lot
of dialogue amongst the Ministers as
it encouraged them to think about the
role leadership plays in driving and
supporting change.
Critical to the Forum was a fruitful
round-table discussion led by the Caribbean Water Ministers on Policy
Challenges focusing specifically on
innovative solutions and the policy
environment needed to support innovation in the water sector. The session allowed for Ministers to actively
engage with each other and learn from
each other as they were able to share
their experiences in their respective
countries. The session was very beneficial as it gave both the CWWA and
the GWP-C a better understanding of
some the policy challenges being faced
in the region so that both organisations and its strategic partners could

better respond to these regional needs.

Also key to the 10th HLF was a session looking back at the ten (10) years
of the Forum. This session provided
an opportunity to reflect and critically
analyse the goals and objectives of the
HLF; look at its main achievements
and outcomes and more importantly
chart a way forward. Professor Jacob
Opadeyi, a Former Chair of the GWP
and Dr. Hugh Sealy, a Past President
of the CWWA each provided inputs on
the history of the HLF and the rationale behind the Forums establishment
to lead the discussions. According to
some of the Ministers present, the session was extremely helpful to them because they had a clearer picture of the
genesis of the Forum.
The 10th High Level Forum was
deemed a success and was made possible through financial contributions
by the CWWA, GEF-CReW and the
GWP-C which was shared between its
core funds and funds under its Water,
Climate and Development Programme
(WACDEP).
Immediate Outcome:
After their discussions and deliberations, the Caribbean Ministers present
at the 10th HLF signed a declaration
agreeing to:
1 Commit themselves to make all
the necessary efforts to convey to
their Cabinets the recommendations made at the High Level Forum
(HLF).
2 The GWP-C, CWWA and the Caribbean Regional Coordinating Unit
of the United Nations Environment
Programme (UNEP-RCU) convening a Closed Ministerial Session
within the HLF for Caribbean Water
Ministers for the purpose of collaboration on matters related to water.
3 The GWP-C, CWWA and UNEPRCU preparing an Information Note
including but not limited to joint investment, research and development
and procurement for the guidance of
Ministers making presentations to
their Cabinet.
4 The GWP-C, CWWA and UNEPRCU providing human resources
to support the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat in the
implementation of decisions of the
10th HLF as appropriate.
5 The GWP-C, CWWA and UNEP-RCU
conveying the recommendations of
the 10th HLF to CARICOM for the
purpose of presenting them to the
Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) and ensuring
that water is represented as a critical
portfolio.
6 The GWP-C, CWWA and UNEPRCU initiating a process to establish
a CARICOM Ministers of Water with
the COTED with the necessary linkages to the Council for Human and
Social Development (COHSOD) that
will provide political leadership,
policy direction and advocacy in the
provision, use and management of
water resources for sustainable social
and economic development of CARICOM member states.
Follow-up Actions:
The GWP-C is committed to working
with the CWWA and the UNEP-RCU
to ensure that these recommendations
are followed-up on. (Global Water
Partnership - Caribbean).

July-December 2014

e-Source

Page 11

Member Utilities News

Superior service and greater efficiency promised with new Barbados Water Authority headquarters
THE NEW BARBADOS WATER Authority (BWA) Headquarters complex, when
complete next year, will allow staff operating under one roof to deliver services to
the Barbadian public and engage them in a
more effective and efficient manner.
The islands Minister of Agriculture,
Food, Fisheries and Water Resource
Management, Dr. David Estwick, made
the declaration as he spoke with members of the press following a tour of the
complex, which is now 50% complete.
Projections are that BWA management
and staff will be able to move into the
modern facility by April 2015.
Stressing that such a project was first
conceptualized in 1985, the Minister
with responsibility for Water Resource
Management noted that Cabinet took
a decision in June 2011 to reengage the
concept of a modern facility for the BWA
to house its numerous departments. As
such, the Minister expressed his delight
with the progress being made on the facility to date.
Minister Estwick noted that great focus
is not only being placed on the construction of the state-of-the-art facility, but a
great deal of internal work is also being
done to ensure that the public can be bet-

ter served and production levels can rise,

when BWA employees enter the complex.
Theres a lot of internal work being
done at the Barbados Water Authority
and a lot of that internal work is related
to internal restructuring and that is being done heavily through a lot of IDB
(Inter-American Development Bank)
programmes.
IDB programmes that look at upgrading the ICT platform in particular, putting in Management Information Systems, Financial Information Systems and
other types of systems under the Water
and Sanitation Upgrade Programmes,
Dr. Estwick revealed.
Those types of systems allow the Barbados Water Authority to be more efficient.
For example, in the technical area, introducing new SCADA (Supervisory Control
and Data Acquisition) systems within the
IDB framework, Estwick explained.
The SCADA system will be a centralized monitoring ICT interface, which will
allow the Water Authority to be much
more efficient and to manage its processes
in terms of what you need to delivering
new connections and also to deal with
burst mains etc. in a more effective and ef-

The new Barbados Water Authority (BWA) headquarters is taking shape to

open its doors next year.
ficient manner and in a more timely manner, the minister added.
I think what this new dynamic will do,
is create the infrastructure that allows not
only the customer service element to work
more efficiently with your procurement
services, (but) also your distribution services, as that has always been an area of

concern for the Barbados Water Authority.

Thats because you may make an application for a service, but sometimes you
have to wait several months -- or even a
year -- to get that service. With the modern
platform, the BWA will be introducing, I
believe those things will be of the past,
Minister Estwick stressed. (GIS Barbados)

SOD TURNED FOR TWO NEW WATER PROJECTS IN GRENADA

We are at a point that I have been looking forward to for a very long time!
Those were the words of NAWASAs
General Manager Mr. Christopher Husbands, as he addressed persons at the Sod
Turning Ceremony for the Chemin Valley
Water System on October 21st, 2014.
For over 40 years, the Chemin Valley
residents and its surrounding environs
have had to deal with no water supply
on occasions during power outage and
also system maintenance. The Borehole
was constructed in 1965 and is the only
practical source of potable water for
the communities of Confer, Marian and
Close Rock, Egmont and Golden Heights,
which are residential developments.
This Chemin Valley Water System Project involves procurement of tank, pumps
and telemetric switching devices, reinforced concrete tank base and also the
installation of approximately 2 km of
200mm ductile iron pipeline, glass fused
tank, borehole pumps, fencing to site and
test and commission system.
According to Mr. Husbands, This project provides NAWASA with the ability to
improve its energy efficiency, as Chemin
Valley is the only system that NAWASA
pumps directly into customers pipelines.
This has been inefficient and very expensive, considering the cost of electricity.
This project was one of priority for
NAWASA because it allows us the ability of scheduled pumping from one point
to another, significantly reducing pumping costs, as persons will now receive this

Minister of Public Utilities and responsibility for Water Hon. Gregory Bowen
(centre) officiated at the ceremonies.
supply by gravity.
This project also provides the benefit
for NAWASA in that persons served by
borehole have a preference for surface
water, which up until now NAWASA
has not been able to influence via treatment. This new reservoir allows NAWASA to invest in other treatment additives
that can address the taste concerns. the
GM further added.
Parliamentary Representative for St.
David Hon. Oliver Joseph said this project is all part of Governments Five Year
Development Plan for the parishs infrastructure. Minister Joseph and Minister
of Public Utilities Hon. Gregory Bowen
turned the sod.

Minister Bowen said We are very happy that significant complaints of water
shortages will be addressed by this project. The Disaster Vulnerability Reduction
Project is of significant importance as it
helps with disaster vulnerability while
bringing improved water supply to various communities.
Following the Sod Turning at Chemin
Valley, teams journeyed to Observatory
to the site where a four hundred thousand gallons (400,000) glass fused steel
bolted tank will be constructed as part
of the Observatory Reservoir Installation
Project. The project aims to ensure that
the town of St. George will not continue
to experience a depleted water supply

during working hours.

Parliamentary Representative for the
Town of St. George Hon. Nicholas Steele
and Minister of Public Utilities Hon.
Gregory Bowen, turned the sod for this
project.
Farmex has been awarded the $5.4 million project to construct Chemin Valley
at $3.8M and the Observatory Tank Reservoir at $1.6 million. Both projects are
funded by the Government of Grenada
and the World Bank as part of its Disaster Vulnerability Reduction Programme.
Meanwhile, September 25 marked another major step-up for the authoritys
operations in the parish of St. Patrick
with the Official Commissioning of its
Mt. Reuil Water Treatment Plant.
In January 2014, the Authority started the
Mt. Reuil Water Treatment Project, which
will see the parish of St. Patrick being
served by two systems. The construction
of this 250,000-gallons-per-day treatment
plant would address the unreliable water
supply in the parish and therefore provide
an environment conducive for investment,
particularly in the Tourism industry.
The completion of this Project also
greatly contributes in ensuring Climate
Change resilience to the water supply in
the Parish.
This Commissioning ceremony was
also attended by the Minister of Public
Utilities Gregory Bowen, who officially
cut the ribbon to open the facility.The
ceremony was held on the grounds Glenleg Natural Spring Production Office.

NAWASA rewards CPEA achievers

As a corporate business organization,
The National Water and Sewerage Authority (NAWASA) continued for the
10th year to award employees children
for their achievement in the Caribbean
Primary Exit Assessment (CPEA) Examination.To date, 70 students have
benefitted from this initiative, which, in
many ways, has enhanced their educational experience e in school and complemented their learning at home.
This year, driven by its responsibility
and commitment to ensuring that there
is a balanced pool of qualified human
resources who would contribute to nation building, the Authority awarded
ten more students with vouchers in the
worth of $300 each, plus other school

items, which will help to defray some of

their educational expenses and encourage them to continue to perform well in
their studies.
Speaking to the awardees, Chairman
of NAWASAs Board of Directors Mr.
Terrance Forrester said, Your achievement proves that given the right opportunities, you can thrive and do well
in your education. Undoubtedly the
support provided by NAWASA to its
employees and their children will be
able to realize potential and attain their
goals.
The Authority values the efforts of
staff in providing the award to these
children, allowing them to develop into
competent individuals who are able

CPEA awardees with NAWASA Chairman Terrence Forrester (right) and HR

Manager Pansy Ventour (left) at the special award ceremony.
to overcome challenges in todays ever
changing and competitive environment.
The Award Ceremony was held at

the Main Office on the Carenage, in the

presence of parents, well-wishers and
employees.

e-Source

Page 12

July-December 2014

World Water and Children

The horrors of thirst and water-borne diseases continue to

affect children worldwide daily!
Surveys from 45 developing countries show that women and children
bear the primary responsibility for
water collection in the majority of
households. This is time not spent
working at an income-generating
job, caring for family members, or
attending school. In addition, consider the following:
443 million school days are lost
each year due to water-related illness.
Diarrhea is the second leading
cause of death among children
under five in the world.
Around 1.5 million deaths each
year - nearly one in five are
caused by diarrhea. It kills more
children than malaria, AIDS and
measles combined.
Every minute at least one child
dies from diarrhea.
An estimated 4,100 children under the age of five die each day
from diarrhea globally.
Malnutrition, due to dirty water,
inadequate sanitation, and hygiene, is estimated to lead to death
in an additional 2,350 children under the age of five each day.
Nearly 1.5 million children under
the age of five die every year from
diarrhea globally.
It is estimated that in the 1980s, a
child died approximately every
six seconds from diarrhea
90% of the deaths due to diarrheal diseases are children under
5 years old, mostly in developing
countries. (Source: UN Water)

In more and more places water is being brought to communities that never had it so clean or never had it at all much
to the happiness of all. But in many places too, children continue to die just because of lack of their communitys access
to water. The Caribbean is more furtunate than many other parts of the world, but in many parts theres still much to
be done to harness the proper distribution and supply to communities near and far. CAWASA seeks to make a change in
and for the Caribbean.

These statistics speak volumes

about the nature of tasks facing
water agencies worldwide and

The link between Water and

Waste can be

Deadly!

The way in which we handle

waste has implications for our
health. If you had any doubt, just
CONSIDER the following:
Diarrhea is more prevalent
throughout the developing
world largely due to the lower
levels of access to safe drinking
water and sanitation, along with
poorer overall health, hygiene,
and nutritional status.
It is estimated that in the 1980s a
child died approximately every
six seconds from diarrhea
Half of the hospital beds in the
world are occupied by patients
suffering from diseases associated with lack of access to safe
drinking water, inadequate sanitation and poor hygiene.
It is estimated that nearly 10% of
the global disease burden could
be reduced through improved
water supply, sanitation, hygiene,
and water resource management.

88% of global cases of diarrhea

is estimated to be attributable
to unsafe drinking water, inadequate sanitation, and poor hygiene.
90% of the deaths due to diarrheal diseases are children under 5
years old, mostly in developing
countries. (Source UN Water)
Proper treatment of waste and
waste water is essential to the
development of clean and safe
water resources everywhere.
Water and Waste Water associations and agencies across the
Caribbean are doing their best to
address the related issues and to
encourage appropriate actions
at national levels.
With the health of the regions
water consumers in mind, CAWASA is committed to enhancing of a regional approach to the
proper handling and treatment
of waste.

CAWASA is committed to playing its part to ensure the Caribbean addresses related issues

earlier than later, with full cooperation of all members and fellow
stakeholders.