The sewerage system often does not function properly

Dear Editor,

I have grown up hearing that Georgetown was the garden city, but as I aged I wondered about the truth of that statement. Georgetown today has a multiplicity of problems that no one seems to be addressing.

Let us look at the drainage situation. The Demerara River which serves as the outlet for many of the internal drains and canals in the city and adjacent communities on both sides of the river is silted up. The river requires dredging in order to increase its capacity to accommodate the rainfall runoff from those internal waterways.

In Georgetown, apart from the fact that many of the drains are silted up, they also serve as receptacles for plastic bags and bottles, styrofoam food boxes and many other forms of rubbish. And that is not all; effluent flows into these drains and canals adding stench and pollution to the environment.

Everyone who lives in Georgetown and the itinerant population that frequents it experience the reek that emanates from the garbage piles around the city so I will not dwell on that. However, the sinister threat about which I wish to comment comes from the sewerage system.

Often, the sewerage system does not function properly. When it is not blocked with rubbish that delinquent users deposit in the system, it is the problem of the pumps breaking down. The current manifestation is the backing up of the system whenever there is a high tide. This causes toilet systems on the ground floors to malfunction. Lavatories cannot deposit their contents in the sewer as the water from the river floods the sewerage lines. So, the sewage overflows in the homes through the toilet and in the yards through the chambers.

What can the aggrieved sufferers do?  To which agency can they turn for redress? Who are the competent authorities responsible for correcting the above situations? How long must people suffer these indignities? Are we awaiting a calamity to occur before we take action? I hope not.

Yours faithfully,
Hubert C Roberts