Water boost for Point Fortin as treatment plant reopened

Over 5,000 residents of La Fortune, Point Fortin will benefit from the refurbishment of a water treatment plant which was shut down eight years ago because of lack of maintenance.

On Saturday, Public Utilities Minister Marvin Gonzales re-commissioned the $1.5 million refurbished facility at Dam Road in Egypt Village, which will improve the water supply in the area.

Gonzales said under the ministry's Community Water Improvement Programme (CWIP), several similar projects, including one at Champs Fleurs and another at Morvant were opened.

CWIP is a short-term work programme intended to address service delivery shortfalls in communities with little or no water access.

The minister recalled being shocked when he visited the plant earlier this year and saw its derelict state of infrastructure.

"I was surprised it had been out of water since 2013. In the next two years, our (ministry’s) focus would not only be on water production but infrastructure," Gonzales said.

He said the Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA) has a cadre of workers crying out for leadership and guidance.

Gonzales identified mismanagement as a key issue impacting WASA’s operations.

He recalled telling the country when he was appointed minister, that mismanagement and corruption were costing citizens millions of dollars.

Despite the challenges within the state-owned agency, Gonzales said there are committed workers and thanked them for their service.

A few months ago, a small team from his ministry started working with Heritage Petroleum officials to help fix water facilities in the south western borough and the environs.

Gonzales said, "Heritage has undertaken to transfer the water treatment facilities to WASA, including 20 water production wells."

These include wells at Parrylands, Guayaguayare, Navet, Edward Trace and ponds at Barrackpore.

"All these assets would now be transferred to WASA, to be managed by WASA. We expect that within a year to 15 months, an additional 10 million gallons of water would be brought into the grid to satisfy the people of Point Fortin," Gonzales said.

He said while WASA has issues, the ministry has been working on resolving them.

Gonzales said, "If we continued with this momentum over the next two to three years, over one million people in TT would experience an improvement in the water supply."

Point Fortin MP Kennedy Richards Jr recalled that the plant was opened in the mid-2000s and closed in 2013. His constituents were using desalinated water which created challenges with pipe laying and bad roads.

He recalled calling Gonzales late one night about the water and road woes.

In March, Gonzales saw the rundown facility first-hand.

To burgesses who still have water issues, Richards said: "We would not be left you out."

Richards assured that he is working on resolving their woes.

WASA's project team leader Aarif Mohamed said the CWIP project began in July, a collaborative effort between the ministry and WASA.

Mohamed said the La Fortune plant produces half a million gallons of water daily.

Two residents, Anita George and Eric McCree, spoke about water woes over the years, adding they were happy to see the plant once more in operation.

George, a pensioner, called for officials to ensure the facility is secured at all times, considering that many years ago, children drowned in the area.

Also at the ceremony were acting Point Fortin mayor Leslie Chang Fong, councillor Kwesi Thomas and other officials.