– urges conservation

The decreasing water level of the Lamaha Canal has forced the Guyana Water Inc (GWI) to adjust its water supply schedule, as El Nino persists.

GWI’s Chief Executive Yuri Chandisingh, addressing the media yesterday at the company’s Vlissengen Road boardroom, stated that the company has been forced to reduce its normal supply of water to customers. He stated that GWI has cut back on the production of water in certain areas as a precautionary measure.

Chandisingh made an appeal to consumers to conserve water and according to him, activities around the home where the purified water supplied by GWI is now utilized for domestic purposes, such as the washing of vehicles, need to be amended.

At other locations around the country, Chandisingh said, the water utility has been reducing the production of water to safeguard its supply. In a release issued by the water company yesterday, Chandisingh stated that the aquifers are currently under “tremendous strain with increased demand and no rainfall to replenish their supplies”.

Customers in Central Georgetown will experience water supply at revised times, with normal water pressure being between the hours of 4:30 am to 9 am and 5 pm to 10 pm in the evening. Customers will experience low water pressure between 9 am and 12 noon and medium pressure at midday. No water pressure will be experienced between 1 pm and 5 pm since the water utility conserves its water supply during this period, when according to the company, customers are not utilizing water for domestic purposes. The Shelter Belt water treatment plan is currently delivering 5 mega-litres less than normal supply quantity, and according to the GWI this significant decrease will affect the supply of water received by customers in Georgetown.

GWI has been partnering with the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) and the East Demerara Water Conservancy (EDWC) board to cushion the effects of El Nino on water resources, and the company has since assisted in the clearing of the inlet which connects the EDWC with the Lamaha Canal to ensure better gravity flow. The company has placed technical staff at Nancy to ensure water is continuously pumped into the EDWC.