Govt spending US$2.7M to study EDWC

A multi-million-dollar contract has been signed to study the East Demerara Water Conservancy in Guyana and identify long-term control strategies to address the problem of flooding in Region Four.

The conservancy and application consultancy contract for some US$2.7 million was signed over to CEMCO and MOTT Mc Donald Ltd on March 2. The two companies have separate duties, but will be working together in conducting the survey which is expected to last 24 months. The study will be paid for through a grant from the World Bank under its Global Environment Special Climate Change fund.

Freddie Flats, engineer within the Agriculture Ministry, during the brief signing ceremony, said that there has not been a comprehensive study of the more than 125-year-old conservancy in the last 30 years. He added that the study will look at several problems being encountered with a hope of having them resolved. “The aim of the study is to move away from management of the conservancy on an emergency basis to development of a long-term control strategy based on detailed analysis,” Flats said.

Some of the areas of study will be internal flow patterns within the conservancy, flow of creeks, the amount of water evaporated, storage space and capacity, response to levels of rainfall, and modelling or mapping of the entire conservancy.

Raymond Latchmansingh of CEMCO related that his company was happy to be associated with the project and assisting the Guyana government in targeting the catastrophic problem of flooding caused by climate change. “I believe that if we achieve all we set out to do, we will see greater improvement of water supply to farmers and GuySuCo in neighbouring communities.” CEMCO had conducted preliminary surveys in 2005 during the floods in Region Four.

Latchmansingh said that it was his company that recommended the construction of the Hope Canal project to assist the conservancy which seems to always be under pressure. He added that not only is the conservancy a problem, but drainage and irrigation is too. “Even if you just have the conservancy looked at, then lower lands downstream will be affected. There is a problem of uneven water levels in the conservancy, so another outlet is needed to move the water freely three-dimensionally.”

Surveying the entire conservancy is a “mammoth task”, Latchmansingh said. He added that his company hopes to be able to use electronic equipment to retrieve data, since even the floor of the conservancy must be documented. Employing engineers to measure the conservancy would be too expensive, and the businessman said that he will speak to the local Internet providers to see if sophisticated technological equipment can be used.

One aspect of the contract that seems to be a challenge, Latchmansingh said, is collecting data from the cross-section of the conservancy. The EDWC has not had a cross section since it was built, and to get physical surveyors to do so will be a challenge because of the mounds, 500-metre trench, and thick vegetation in the area. He said that the company hopes to be able to use light detection and radar technology to retrieve data. Work will be started by CEMCO as soon as the water level is low. Equipment to transmit data is to be shipped in for the study.

Andrew Kirby, Project Director of Mott Mc Donald Ltd – an international firm of engineers and management consultants, said that he was happy to be a part of the study.

Agriculture Minister Robert Persaud said that it was important to address the issue of flooding particularly as it affects the livelihood of farmers. He lamented the inadequate knowledge authorities have of the conservancy.

The impacts of climate change and the benefits to be derived from a better functioning irrigation system were underscored by Persaud.