GWI says ‘stink, dirty’ tap water at Wakenaam is nothing new

Jan 04, 2023 News

…as CEO responds to Glenn Lall’s Tik Tok video

Kaieteur News – Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Guyana Water Incorporation (GWI), Shaik Baksh on Tuesday responded to a TikTok video that was posted by Kaieteur News Publisher, Glenn Lall in which he decried poor quality of water being distributed to the residents of Wakeanaam Island, Region Two.

In the video, Lall said, “The smell of the drinking water that the Government is supplying in Wakeanaam makes you want to vomit.” He shared that during the holidays he visited his hometown in Wakeanaam, and after having a meal, “I went to wash my hands and if I didn’t have a good stomach all that lovely food I ate, would have come out in the sink.”

Kaieteur News Publisher, Glenn Lall

Lall went on to state that not only was the colour of the water horrifying, but the odour was atrocious, which led him to reference the smell to the fume given off, “when paddy is being soaked to make seedlings in boxes and in the trenches.”

According to Lall the smell of the water is so pungent that the Residents of Wakeanaam are unable to wash their clothes or cooking utensils with it. “The Residents using the trench water rather than the pipe water, to wash their clothes and utensils- and that’s how stink and dirty the water is and this Government, this Government, have its citizens paying for,” he said. Lall had also shared that one of his school friends even informed him of similar quality of water being distributed in Tuschen, East Bank Essequibo.

In response to Lall’s TikTok video, the GWI CEO held a Press Conference on Tuesday and he was joined by the Company’s Head of Water Quality, Avinash Parsram. For Baksh’s part he highlighted that the quality of water has always been a major issue for the GWI stating that “this is nothing new.” He said, “I will deal with the water quality issue right now especially since one media personality over the weekend has stated that there is poor water quality in Wakeanaam and Tuschen…so I want to deal with that.”

Baksh, a former Housing and Water Minister, who also at one time served as Education Minister, explained that the aquifer in Guyana on the coastal belt because of the make-up of the Phreatic Zone, the formation of the aquifer, is higher in content. He said, “So as we move from Region Two to Region Six along the coastal belt you’ll find varying levels of iron in water and this is historical, it is nothing new.”

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Guyana Water Incorporation (GWI), Shaik Baksh

The CEO added that only last year the Government of Guyana commissioned a $50 million well at Noitgedacht, which is located on the island of Wakeanaam. To this end he noted that so far the production of that well can be described as “excellent.” “Throughout the island we have between 15 and 20 feet of water, so residents have received a very good level of service and this is confirmed by the Regional Chairman, the Deputy Chairman and other residents of Wakeanaam, but there is quality issues as I mentioned before, this is historical,” he noted.

Baksh went on to state that high iron content is responsible for the water woes not the GWI and noted that the same water quality issue is occurring on the Essequibo Coast, Region Two.

The GWI Boss then added that when the Noitgedacht well was commissioned, President Irfaan Ali himself had highlighted that water quality is a major concern and had noted that it is an area which has been identified for huge investments in Guyana. “So it is surprising to know that an individual can go there and selectively use this water quality (like it) is a big issue. Now we have stated at the commissioning (of the Noitgedacht well) that a new water treatment plant will be constructed on the island of Wakeanaam and we are moving in that direction very expeditiously,“ Baksh added.

While highlighting the company’s plan to address the issue of poor water quality (high iron content in water), the CEO disclosed that they have embarked on a massive programme called Coastal Water Treatment. According to him, under the programme 30 new water treatment plants will be constructed across the coastal belt. For his part, GWI’s Head of Water Quality said the Noitgedacht well has an iron content of 6 milligrams per liter and Tuschen has an iron content of about 2.7 milligrams per liter. “Now iron has its own accompanying issues but the results generated over the last year for these wells and the corresponding distribution the results indicate clearly that at all times, the turbidity and the colour of the water have met WHO guidelines. The only parameter that has not met the guidelines, is the iron content,” he added.