Survey: Only 14% of households had required level of chlorine at point of use
Linden is set to benefit from safer drinking water after a watershed management pilot was recently launched in the community.
According to a Government Information Agency (GINA) press release Minister within the Ministry of Health and Water Steering Committee Chairman Dr Bheri Ramsaran last Tuesday attended the function which falls under the national plan of action for water safety. The release said the initiative was formulated within the Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Sources of Pollution, a global agreement committed by governments worldwide to improve the health of coastal and marine waters.
Pan American Health/ World Health Organisation Country Representative Dr Kathleen Israel said a survey conducted in Region Ten showed that only “14% of households reached the required level of free chlorine at the point of use and this is one of the reasons why Linden was selected for the implementation for this initiative.”
Highlighting a Ministry of Health 2005 report, she said water related diseases comprise the five leading causes of morbidity in children less than five years of age with the prevalence of diarrhoea ranging 7.2 per cent in urban areas to 14.5 per cent in the hinterland areas. “This kind of scenario prompted the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to advocate for the National Programme and also the WHO to promote the water safety plan. Guyana we were told combined those two initiatives to come up with one plan that addresses, coastal water, as well as land-based water supply, to address issues with production, distribution and the monitoring of water from the point of source to consumers, effective water management and to ensure that the best use is made of available supply,” she added.
Meanwhile, Caribbean Environmental Health Insti-tute Executive Director Patricia Aquing said Linden “is going to represent a template or methodology as to how we get things done in terms of implementing the methodology and systems that will be put in place.” She said Linden is the first constituency in the Caribbean for the implementation of the project.
Additionally, US Ambassador John Jones said Guyana is blessed with its abundance of water while adding that clean drinking water is essential for the development of society and the nation. “Guyana has taken a bold step to make it possible for this community of Linden to have good drinking water and to have a good system in place.”
He said too in the light of global warming, desertification, droughts and increases in water borne illnesses, “it’s imperative that a nation has a plan to meet the water needs of its people.
Regional Chairman Mortimer Mingo said the region is also grateful for the collaborative efforts of the many reputable agencies which joined in making the pilot project a reality and to give the benefit of their combined expertise to ensure the achievement of acceptable standards in the provision and management of the invaluable resource.
GINA said Presidential Advisor on Sustainable Development Navin Chandarpal, Scientific Services Manager at the Guyana Water Incorporated Savitri Jetoo and Director, Environmental Health Unit at the Ministry of Health, Dr Ashok Sookdeo also attended the function.
