Latest update April 16th, 2025 7:21 AM
Latest News
- Oil production in Guyana to climb to 900K barrels per day… as 4th FPSO arrives
- Italian company secures contract for early works on Exxon’s 7th project yet to be approved
- Israel proposes Gaza ceasefire deal to release 10 hostages for hundreds of Palestinians, Hamas says
- Peru’s ex-president and first lady sentenced to 15 years in jail
- Brazil to auction 172 oil blocks in June
Envoy urges Government to finance execution of modern drainage model
…as Dutch University students present report
The Government of Guyana yesterday received a modernized hydraulic drainage model, from the
Head of the delegation Joost Remmers making a presentation on the drainage model yesterday.
team of seven Dutch Master’s students of Delft University, which can now be used to inform future decisions regarding drainage and flooding.
The report was handed over during a ceremony in the Ministry of Agriculture’s Boardroom in the presence of the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary George Jervis, Minister within the Ministry of Public Infrastructure Annette Ferguson, Chairperson of the National Taskforce Secretariat Sewnauth Punalall and Honorary Dutch Consul to Guyana Ben ter Welle.
Head of the Dutch university delegation Joost Remmers said that the model will help Guyana to now make reliable decisions on drainage. According to him, his team’s mission was split up into three parts; Local drainage, Primary Channels and outfall structures, particularly the kokers near the Demerara River.
He said that the hydraulic modelling requires specific information to operate. These include geometric data, hydraulic data and boundary conditions. Remmers explained that geometric data refers to the size and length of drainage channels; hydraulic data includes information on local drainage and primary channels and boundary conditions include but are not limited to tide elevation and how long a koker takes to open.
Although the team focused primarily on the South Ruimveldt catchment area, Remmers said that the model can be used to compare and quantify the effects of different interventions across Guyana.
He demonstrated a scenario, using the model, whereby it could have been predicted what the water levels would be if a canal is cleaned or filled with vegetation during periods of intense rainfall. Accordingly, the model could predict the extent to which a particular area would be flooded. He said that the model is to serve as a knowledge base for future decisions.
Minister Annette Ferguson with the Delft University students.
Permanent Secretary George Jervis reminded the gathering that the relationship between Guyana and the Dutch Team began in 2015 when the City of Georgetown had been subjected to vast flooding due to tremendous levels of rainfall. In November of that year, the Dutch Risk Reduction Team had visited to conduct an assessment of the drainage system on the coastland.
A report of that assessment was presented in January last, whereby the creation of a hydraulic drainage model was one of several recommendations. Jervis said that this mission by the Dutch students is a follow-up to what their predecessors would have done.
Dutch Consul Ben ter Welle urged the government to ensure that finances are secured to fund the implementation of the project. He said that it is not good enough just to have the knowledge, but rather, it is better to see it used and improved by the relevant authorities.
He explained that Guyana and the Netherlands share the common problem of living with water and as such, the two countries should continue to collaborate to offer assistance.
Minister Ferguson in her remarks made it clear that her government will not allow such valuable information to be placed on the shelf to accumulate dust. She guaranteed that the model will be used effectively.
The Dutch Team is expected to carry out informative workshops over the next two days whereby stakeholders will be educated on the model and how it can be used.
Similar Articles
THE BLUNT OF THE DAY
Sports
Features/Columnists
In praise of the Almighty Executive Order
Peeping Tom… Kaieteur News- Democracy, as we know it, is a kind of ménage à trois — the elected, the appointed,... more
Collaborative Government–Private Sector Action Imperative for a Resilient Trade Future
By Sir Ronald Sanders Kaieteur News- On April 9, 2025, U.S. President Donald Trump announced a 90-day suspension of the higher... more
Weekend Cartoon
