Reporter
Carisa.lee@cnc3.co.tt
Minister of Public Utilities Marvin Gonzales has asked Desalination Company of T&T (Desalcott) Executive Chairman Yashmid Karamath to reschedule a planned shutdown for October, saying Water and Sewage Authority (WASA) reservoirs are struggling to reach their long-term average.
Speaking during a media conference at the Ministry of Public Utilities yesterday, acting WASA CEO Kelvin Romain said despite the rainy season, two of the nation’s reservoirs were about 50 per cent below the long-term averages and there were lower than normal river levels at the Caroni River, which supplies the water treatment plant that produces 30 per cent of T&T’s supply.
“While there is some rainfall and at times some bursts of intense ones, it hasn’t been sufficient to sustain reservoir levels to where we’d really want it to be,” Romain explained.
“I was informed earlier that Mr Karamath agreed to reschedule the shutdown as a result of our conditions.
“A Desal shutdown usually lasts between five to ten days. At this point in time, because of the low river levels and reservoir levels, we would have cut down production to 45 million gallons. Desal being out, it would have a really negative impact on the network.”
Desalcott typically supplies 40 million gallons of water per day, he said.
Romain thanked the minister for taking the initiative, adding regaining normalcy after a Desalcott shutdown would have taken about a month. He added that a shutdown and the low levels at Caroni would have negatively impacted the network with a deficit of 60 million gallons.
According to WASA, at the start of the rainy season (May 2024), the levels at the Caroni/Arena reservoir were at 25.6 per cent, which has a long-term average of 52.8 per cent.
The Hollis Reservoir was at 35.7 per cent, with a long-term average of 43.6 per cent and the Navet Reservoir was at 29.4 per cent, with a long-term average of 49.1 per cent.
As of September, the Caroni/Arena reservoir was at 35.8 per cent, the Hollis reservoir was at 32.7 per cent and the Navet reservoir was at 45.4 per cent.
Acting Director of Operations Sharia Ali said with the Caroni/Arena being below what it should be at this time, WASA was carefully managing what was being released and abstracted from the river.
She added that just this week, WASA had to make a cutback at the Hollis reservoir, which serves approximately 50,000 people in that area.
Ali said a new schedule will be made public for customers soon. She said in the last two years they have been able to significantly reduce the number of leaks across the country from 5,000 to 300, adding WASA plans to decrease that number further in the next month.
“Within this new October month, I anticipate and project to see all the leaks being addressed in terms of our backlog and us going down to 200,” she said.
WASA added that the decommissioned water tank in Parlatuvier, Tobago, where the decomposing bodies of 33-year-old Sarah Smith and her two young children, Genuine and Phoenix, were found, will also be replaced.