Minister: Water metering not a WASA priority

PUBLIC Utilities Minister Marvin Gonzales says while the government is planning to restructure the Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA), there is no pending plan to install water meters throughout the country.

Gonzales announced this in a media release on Tuesday, in which the ministry said it sought to "set the record straight," after a recent newspaper report.

A Sunday Guardian article included an interview with WASA’s executive director Dr Lennox Sealy, who suggested he would like customers to buy their own meters, "so that the burden of buying thousands of meters dissipates."

In response, the ministry said no attempt was made to obtain the Government’s position on the issue and that the headline, on customers paying for WASA meters, was "not consistent with any decision of the Government on the issue of domestic metering."

But Gonzales said metering will play an important role in the management of water at the domestic level – at the appropriate time.

"However at this time, the Government’s primary focus is the transformation and restructuring of (WASA) into a high-performing utility company that can meet the needs of all of its customers, as well as pursuing a National Strategic Water Stabilisation and Improvement Programme that is targeted towards improving the reliability of the water supply for all communities in Trinidad and Tobago."

He said this programme will focus on rehabilitating WASA’s water production and transmission plants, exploiting groundwater resources, well rehabilitation and development, constructing new water intakes and using technology "to manage the distribution of water to all our communities."

He said once these are achieved "and customers can benefit from an efficient and reliable water supply," Government will focus on domestic metering, :after due consultation with the national community," as well as other initiatives "that will contribute towards the transformation and modernisation of the water sector."

Last year, former minister of public utilities Robert Le Hunte resigned as minister, senator and chairman of the Roadmap to Recovery committee and later as PNM vice-chairman.

Le Hunte said his resignation as minister was "a result of professional conflict on policy positions."

More specifically, it was reported that Le Hunte resigned after a clash with Cabinet over a proposal for a $1.5 billion metering system for WASA.