Mar 10, 2010 – President of the Manchester Chamber of Commerce (MCC) Winston Lawson says the current water shortage is severely affecting businesses, particularly those in water-intensive industries, in the parish.

According to Lawson, operators of spas and providers of health services that depend on a consistent supply of water are being forced to reschedule client visits.

Lawson, who was addressing a Jamaica Realtors Banquet in Mandeville recently, said the water situation was affecting development across the parish.

“You cant be appealing to people to come and invest here as you’d want to, they’d come here and have that sort of challenge. You really can’t have the type of development you want if there’s not adequate water. It’s bad business, and bad for what we need to achieve in developing this region,” he told the Observer in an interview after the function.

Lawson called on the water authorities to “clearly articulate” their plan for the region, particularly Manchester.

“Is there an overall plan? Is it on the front-burner or the back-burner or, perhaps, on no burner at all?” he asked.

“The Chamber, and I am sure, the stakeholders of this region, are ready to work with the authorities in implementing the relevant programmes in encouraging conservation, water catchment structures and much more. We want the dialogue and action to commence without delay,” he said.

The MCC president said the need for Manchester’s water situation to be remedied, is even more urgent now, as the parish moves to develop new industries to fill the gap left by the closure of bauxite company Windalco. The chamber has already made moves to fast-track the parish’s agriculture, community tourism, knowledge-based and health services sectors, which are seen as the prime industries to replace bauxite. “Any plans for greater reliance on these industries for our local economy will require a workable strategy incorporating adequate water supply,” Lawson said.

He said just recently, a major educational institution in the parish faced closure because of the water crisis. He, however, refused to name the institution.

In the meantime, he called on the real estate developers to make water provisions a major part of their housing development plans. “Too often and for far too long, so-called development takes place without proper planning and proper provisions for the ample supply of water. We at the Chamber do not encourage this. Given the challenges particularly in Mandeville and parts of St Elizabeth, we must insist that working water catchment structures and systems are part and parcel of the houses on the market,” he said.

Manchester’s water woes are not new. Water officials and politicians alike, have long placed blame for the capital’s water problems in particular, on its high altitude in relation to areas in St Elizabeth and Porus, from which it receives its major supply. They’ve reportedly said it is expensive to pump the needed daily supply for the growing capital, to such a high altitude.

Problems at the well in Pepper, which supplies Mandeville and its environs with much of its water, has worsened the situation in recent years. Recent reports of close to half of the parish’s fire hydrants being out of service, coupled with the limited water supply, has sparked concern among some residents that a massive fire in the parish would be difficult to contain.

(Source: The Daily Observer)