Dear Editor,
In Sunday Stabroek (April 20, 2008) in a report headlined, “Dawa pump station to be commissioned shortly” Mr Dharamlall, Head of the Guyana Rice Project Management Unit is purported to have told SN that ‘a fully functioning Dawa pumping station would also mitigate flooding during times of heavy rainfall’.
The Dawa pumping station was designed to provide irrigation water from the Tapakuma River to supplement water in the Tapakuma Lake/Conservancy to irrigate rice lands along the Essequibo Coast from Somerset & Berks in the north to Zorg En Vlygt in the south. The Dawa pumps were not designed for dual purpose (irrigation + drainage) unless Mr Dharamlall could enlighten farmers as to how the recently installed pumps will achieve these objectives.
In the article Mr Dharamlall implied that the newly installed pumps will relieve flooding in the Pomeroon Area. The Dawa pumps provide water to irrigate a very small segment of Pomeroon lands but they will have no effect on flood relief in the Pomeroon area.
Yours faithfully,
Charles Sohan
