Five water supply systems now designated red

THE IMPACT OF the drought across St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG), has worsened forcing the Central Water and Sewage Authority (CWSA) to implement stricter water rationing protocols in several communities. Currently, five water supply systems have are now listed as critical.

In early April, the CWSA began to update residents on the Seasonal Water Management Alerts. At that time, no communities were classified to be red, which indicates that a system is under risk and strict water conservation measures were being put in place. Under the red advisory, activities such as car washing, power washing and other non-essential activities are prohibited.

CONTRAST: In this 2014 photo well organised residents of Barrouallie await their turn to fill up their utensils after heavy rains disrupted the water supply in several communities. (Facebook photo)

Four systems were under yellow advisory at the time- Majorca, Dalaway, Johns Hill and Jennings; while Montreal, was under orange watch. Those classified as yellow were not expected to experience any water disruptions; while those classified as orange were set to experience water outages from 8:00 p.m to 5:00 a.m until further notice.

By mid-April, the Montreal water supply system was upgraded to red, and daily water rationing was implemented in over a dozen communities.

From May 8, 2024, water rationing had increased to run from 8:00 p.m to 5:00 a.m, and again from 10:00 a.m to 2:00 p.m for communities supplied by the Montreal system.

However, the CWSA had noted that water disruptions may begin earlier than slated and end later than the stated time. Social media users have shared accounts of water being shut off as early as two hours before the scheduled time and returning close to an hour after.

Over the weekend, the CWSA released a notice saying, “The CWSA has observed a reduction in river flows and by extension, the volume of water available for harvesting from three of its major water sources: Dalaway, Montreal and Majorca…we wish to inform you that rationing has

become necessary for more communities supplied by the Dalaway water source”.

In addition, rationing periods were increased for communities supplied by the Majorca system.

Yesterday, Monday May 13, 2024, the CWSA released another notice informing the public that five water supply systems were now listed as critical. They are: Montreal, Majorca, Jennings, John Hill, Mamoon and Dalaway.

A press briefing has been scheduled for today at 1:30 p.m to provide updates on drought conditions affecting the country.

The Barbados-based Caribbean Climate Outlook Forum (CariCOF) says 2024 is expected to be a year of climate extremes in the region.

Frequent dry spells, a further build-up of ongoing drought, record- breaking heat, and wildfire potential are listed as some of the features for this year’s dry season.