Govt establishes Task Force to find effective drainage solutions for Georgetown

Jan 08, 2017 News

– Will utilise recommendations from Dutch Risk Reduction report

Minister of State, Joseph Harmon, said on Friday, that Cabinet has setup a task force to focus on improving and managing the drainage of the capital, Georgetown.

An entrance into Bourda Market flooded two weeks ago.

Guyana’s coastline, earlier last week and some days during the previous week, had experienced flashfloods from what authorities have described as a series of ‘irregular’ deluges with the added effect of the high tide.
This occurrence left officials scampering to bring much needed relief to residents, especially those that occupy low-lying areas.
Minister Harmon told media operatives that Minister of Communities, Ronald Bulkan, will lead the Task Force which will also be expected to prepare a plan for the long-term development of works they will undertake.
The team will include members of the Mayor and City Council (M&CC) of Georgetown; the Ministries of Agriculture and Public Infrastructure; and the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA).
Last year, the Dutch Risk Reduction team comprising students from the Delft University in the Netherlands had conducted a series of studies and subsequently presented their findings and recommendations at the end of September to the Minister of Public Infrastructure, David Patterson.
Some of their recommendations included increasing flood resilience of people and businesses; the upgrading of dredging capabilities; the development and application of a life cycle approach for the drainage assets; and data management through digitisation.
Quizzed on the government’s plan to implement some of these recommendations, Harmon said that it is expected that the task force will utilise some of the suggestions that was put forth.

Shoppers navigating through the flooded Robb Street on Christmas Eve Day.

“The entire drainage system here in Guyana was built by the Dutch, so when they came, what they discovered was that a number of the canals were filled in and we made roads where those canals were. In very many cases where we had outfalls to be drained we had actually built car parks and all these kinds of things over them” Harmon said.
Radical Changes
The Minister noted that there will have to be some “radical” changes in the way things are done in relation to drainage pointing out that the overall strategy will have to take these matters into account.
“We cannot complain that every time the rain falls that we are flooded and we are seeing that the reason for the flooding, for the water not going off very quickly, right before our very eyes. We have to be strong about this matter and take some very hard decisions about it.”
Harmon said that Cabinet was also updated on the fresh water catchment areas and conservancies which were experiencing levels well within their safety margins while adding that the NDIA is working assiduously to drain flooded areas.
The Guyana Civil Defence Commission (CDC) is also monitoring the situation countrywide, the Minister said.
A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC)’s ascension to office back in May 2015, began its campaign on behavioral change which sparked an almost nationwide clean-up drive. That initiative has somewhat paid off. Flood waters in some areas, now receding at a never before seen rate.

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