More water, bright lights, and LNG power plant are among new promises made by APUA and Cabinet, as residents complain
Water, water everywhere and not a drop in their pipes. This
continues to be the complaint of thousands of residents, while the
Browne Administration is promising to install yet another Reverse
Osmosis (RO) Plant and increase water production.
For almost 10 years, the administration has been promising to ramp
up the production of potable water. But in spite of Government
adding a number of desalting plants, householders say no significant
increase in distribution has been felt.
Several managers of the Antigua Public Utilities Authority (APUA)
were invited to Cabinet on Wednesday, June 21, to address the
company’s preparedness for the hurricane season, as well as the
production and distribution of water.
Reports say that water production at the Ffryes Reverse Osmosis
Plant has not been optimal. Supposedly, capacity was reduced
because of the failure of a critical component, and this has been the
case with several other plants, a source says.
The replacement parts had to be procured from an overseas
supplier and, reportedly, may arrive on island very early next week.
In the meantime, that plant has been taken offline for maintenance.
APUA says it is currently utilizing 11 million gallons of storage
around the island, at present. However, it needs 30 million gallons
of storage – equivalent to three days’ worth of water – if it is to
supply all consumers at all hours and achieve the resiliency needed
to overcome the current outages.
For this reason, it is sometimes necessary to fill the tanks at night
and discharge the stored water to customers in the daytime, the
Authority explains.
The Cabinet reportedly has agreed that APUA will install sufficient
capacity in the Yeptons/Five Islands area to accommodate both the
residential and college communities, as dorms and additional
facilities are being built.
Meanwhile, APUA says that another RO plant will be commissioned
in Barbuda in July, increasing production to 180,000 gallons per
day.
The new plant, the Authority says, will ensure there is sufficient
water to supply homes and businesses on the sister- island. It adds
that potable-water production in Barbuda will also be driven by
green technology.
In other news from APUA, a new power plant that will be driven by
liquid natural gas (LNG) is to be constructed.
Officials say that a team comprising Police, APUA and Ministry of
Public Utilities officials will examine areas across Antigua where
streetlights are required.
The objective is to create well-lit alleyways and community roads
and ensure that persons engaging in criminal activities are deterred
by these bright lights. Cameras will also be installed as a deterrent
to criminals, the officials say.
