Considering future needs in infrastructural investments

May 15, 2021 Letters

DEAR EDITOR,

I recently participated in a civil engineering conference on sustainability, and of note is that the infrastructure investments we make today are going to impact our sustainability goals over their estimated 70-year lifecycle. There was a case study on a bridge in New York raised to allow for the passing of commercial ships. This is similar to the current issue facing the Demerara Harbour Bridge in Guyana. We should be asking ourselves what will be our needs about 30 years and 50 years from now? What technology is available today that we can leverage to have the maximum impact on the sustainability goals for positive climate change? If we consider the electric vehicle trends of today, the shift occurring in the automotive industry and the renewable technologies available, there is an opportunity to do much more with what on the surface appears to be an easy upgrade to the current infrastructure. Keeping in mind the goals of the Paris Agreement, the reality is that marginal improvements are not enough to have the shift in the consumption habits and fossil fuel culture that exist today in our society.
Focusing on the Guyanese problem with the Demerara Harbour Bridge, there is a clear opportunity to leverage a new approach to crossing the Demerara River. The Government should consider reviewing the following options available: 1. Travel by boats/vehicles carrying ferries powered by a renewable energy source; 2. Use of a bridge: a) walking, b) cycling, c) train, d) automobile; and 3. all the above
Most have selected 2. d) as their primary consideration and target consumer for such infrastructural investment. If we look closer at the use of an automobile to cross the river via a bridge or in Guyana’s case a “High Span Bridge” then the next question is, what kind of bridge should it be and for what kind of automobile today, 30, 50 and 70 years from now? Based on current incentives and regulations trends in car producing countries, it would be fair to expect that electric cars will be a dominant form of the automobile in the future. Solar energy is also turning out to be one of the more cost-effective sources of energy.
How can we leverage these two trends? One example would be to allow for a solar powered moving horizontal surface on the bridge that also provides for charging of electric vehicles. This would reduce emissions of fossil-fuelled automobiles and also provide a central charging location for electric vehicles under a covered platform that isn’t exposed to the elements. These forward-looking elements in our infrastructure developmental investments make quite a difference in whether we are only solving today’s problems or also providing solutions for the future. We must always keep in mind that there are limited funds and the investments made today will last approximately 70 years. Choose well.

Best regards,
Mr. Jamil Changlee
Chairman
The Cooperative Republicans of Guyana

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