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Dissuading another Great Flood

Jan 31, 2009 Letters

Dear Editor,
It is true that Guyana has had a history of floods. Only in 2005, Guyana experienced one of the worst floods as a result of heavy rainfall. However, Government did respond immediately and made every effort to tackle the floods despite their limited resources at that time.

The year 2008 experienced 60% to 70% above normal rainfall as a result of climate change; this rainfall was beyond our drainage capacity.

At the beginning of 2008, the Government spent about $3.7 billion on drainage and irrigation. At least $2.1 billion was used by the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority for rehabilitative and maintenance work, and approximately $50 million was spent on the Conservancy Adaptation Project which developed a hydraulic engineering foundation critical for flood control management.

We must not fail to acknowledge the tremendous effort this Government made in order to dissuade another flood at the end of 2008, which was anticipated to be worse than that of 2005. Nevertheless, through strategic planning, despite the many constraints faced, Government was able to prevent the reoccurrence of another great flood.

It is laudable that the Government was able to secure 36 excavators and 72 pumps to battle the flood threats along the Coastland as compared to 60 pumps in 2005. Flood waters can now drain faster from the land as compared to flood waters of 2005.

Battling the excessive rainfall and floods in 2008 was not an easy task but one which experienced many difficulties. There were some areas on the Coast which were lower than other parts, and since drainage depended on gravity flows, this posed a problem.

However, Government Officials and Teams continued to execute their duties and were able to prevent another great flood.  These teams up to today still monitor those vulnerable areas and the efficiency of their drainage systems.

The impact of the recent flooding has decreased because of the heavy investment made by Government since the 2005 flood.

Today, there are ongoing works at conservancies, to improve capacity, to promote drainage/outflow and secure the integrity of the East Coast of Demerara Water Conservancy.

Notwithstanding the battle with excess rainfall accumulation, it is such a shame to see the continuation of indiscriminate dumping of debris into canals, people tampering with pumps, removing gates from sluices, closing off sluices and cutting dams and other illegal acts.

I was always proud to be a Guyanese, but to witness such ignorance and lawlessness by my fellow Guyanese, my mind is now in a dilemma.

The political gimmick that many politicians play in times of crisis is pitiful.  How can anyone in their right sense of mind feed off of people’s misery, just to selfishly score cheap political points?  It is unacceptable and such acts should be condoned.

Instead, let us work together and meaningfully participate with each other, and continue to improve and sustain our drainage and irrigation systems so as to avoid another great flood.
Dwayne Narine

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