Dear Editor,

In a letter (SN 12.5.09), Messrs Husain, Ganchand and other farmers in the Mahaica River Valley have expressed their pleasure and satisfaction at the news of the proposal to construct a canal at Hope on the East Coast of Demerara to relieve floodwaters from the East Demerara Water Conservancy (EDWC). They further expressed the view that the Hope Canal is the only  method to effectively reduce flooding to a minimum (in the Mahaica River) during the rainy season. However, their expectations for flood reduction in the valley should not be overly optimistic, as it is evident that they are not very conversant as to how the current flood control regime functions, and hence the cause of their flooding problems and to a lesser extent the improvements which should be made to resolve them.

Flooding in the Mahaica River Valley during periods of heavy rainfall is due mainly to run-off from its own catchment, and while the valley is in flood mode its situation is accentuated by floodwater releases from the EDWC through the Lama and Maduni sluices which is usually concurrently in flood mode. To exacerbate the problem, the ocean and river defences have deprived the river of its flood plain thus causing a bottleneck at Cane Grove.

Therefore, flooding in the Mahaica River Valley will only be solved when a dam is constructed across the Mahaica River for the purposes of flood control and irrigation, and not by the proposed Hope Relief Canal whose sole objective is to ensure the integrity of the EDWC dam by managing safe water levels in the conservancy through controlled releases.

Many opinions and conclusions have been expressed on the proposed Hope Relief Canal project and the contract award procedures which were adopted for consultancy services.

These deliberations have shown serious concerns regarding the project’s effectiveness and estimated costs compared with less costly alternatives.

Consultants have been appointed to conduct studies and prepare a design for the proposed works, and the Mahaica farmers and folks living in those villages along the banks of the proposed canal should appreciate that to design and build a project of this magnitude by Guyanese standards will be complex and costly, and their concern should be directed at measures aimed at ensuring that the final design is cost effective and the completed project satisfies the required objectives with guarantees for project performance and safeguards for their safety and well-being.

Yours faithfully,
Charles Sohan