Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation, Senator Matthew Samuda, said with Supreme Ventures’ launch of its 1.7-megawatt solar facility, Jamaica is one step closer to the advancement of its climate change mitigation efforts.

Making his address at the official launch of the Caymanas Park Solar Energy Project today, Minister said, “Mitigation primarily is about cutting emissions; Jamaica has already indicated that it will move 50% of its energy generation into renewables, and the size of this plant is a good step this morning”.

Supreme Ventures Racing and Entertainment Limited (SVREL), operators of Caymanas Park, announced that they have installed a solar energy system at their Portmore location as part of their modernization and sustainability strategy.

In addition to reducing the carbon footprint of the track operations, this investment will allow SVREL to redirect resources to improve other aspects of the park and the horseracing industry in general, which provides employment to hundreds of Jamaicans.

“Horse racing generally is the 17th most consumed sport globally. One thing we are sure of is that no economic activity will thrive without making the changes it needs to ‘green’ itself. It is the only way we are going to build in resilience and the only way we are going to build in the capacity for the prosperity we have been preaching,” Minister Samuda said.

The Minister added that he is encouraged by Supreme Ventures’ step to reduce its carbon footprint and welcomed additional private sector partnerships in the fight against climate change.

“This is a major step, now that step can’t be only done by Government, it will take private sector investment, it will take private sector partnerships with the government to ensure that we put in place the amount of renewable that is required. As well as how we go about changing our national fleet, both publicly owned and privately owned to electric vehicles”.

Minister Samuda noted that electric vehicles have a clear advantage as there is a 60% savings on fuel usage weekly, with or without the use of renewables. He encouraged operators to consider moving in this direction with the Government.

The Government is taking further steps to increase its capacity to respond to water disruptions across the island with the procurement of eight water trucks valued at $105 million, which will be added to the National Water Commission’s fleet.

Prime Minister and Minister of Economic Growth and Job Creation, Most Hon. Andrew Holness, handed over the trucks to the NWC at a ceremony held on the agency’s Marescaux Road compound today.

The trucks with an estimated capacity of 35,000 gallons of water were procured from Tank Weld Limited. This will bring the number of operational water trucks at the NWC to 16.

“In 2020, just as we were going through the pandemic we were also going through a drought. And indeed, a part of Manchester had no water. We were not able to respond in an effective way because the parish council did not have water trucks and the NWC did not have water trucks, as was pointed out last time that an administration had purchased water trucks was under the Bruce Golding administration in 2009,” the Prime Minister said.

Prime Minister Holness informed that this gap in the water utility company’s armour prompted the need for additional water trucks to maintain regular supply to citizens.

“We took the decision that we have to make an investment in the ability of the NWC to respond. The NWC had no standing capacity to respond as a utility if there was a break in the service to customers. So, we made a decision to allocate capital resources to buy these trucks,” he said.

Prime Minister said the trucks represent an Investment in the resilience of the water utility and its ability to respond to a shock.

“These trucks primarily will ensure that police stations, schools and other critical public service infrastructures if water were to be down, the NWC will be able to respond and provide water and keep the economy going,” Prime Minister Holness added.

In his greetings, Minister without Portfolio in the MEGJC, Sen. Hon. Matthew Samuda, noted that the issue of water security is not lost on the Government especially with the changing climate.

“Jamaica’s weather patterns have become particularly erratic. It has made it difficult for us to plan in terms of what our source supply will be from our water systems. But additionally one of the things that we have seen, certainly from the eastern end of the island is that because of the volume of work intended to bring prosperity to the people, during that work there is sometimes additional disruption to households and indeed businesses, this increased capacity will significantly allow us to be responsive to the needs of citizens and to the needs of businesses,” he said.

The NWC will be deploying the eight water trucks by the end of the week to its six regions: Kingston, St. Andrew, and St. Thomas; Clarendon and St. Catherine; St. Mary, St. Ann, and Portland; Manchester and St. Elizabeth; St. James and Trelawny; and Hanover and Westmoreland.

Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation (MEGJC), Sen. Hon. Matthew Samuda, said approximately 9,000 persons will receive improved water security from a National Water Commission project that will target the Non Pariel, Retirement, and Orange Hill region in Westmoreland.

“This approximately $475 million project sees the major communities of Mount Airy, Good Hope, Orange Hill, Retirement, Brighton, Hog Haven, and Whitehall benefitting from a system that is designed to serve up to 9,000 persons,” said Minister Samuda today during the official commissioning ceremony for the water project.

The improved system has the capacity to handle 500,000 gallons per day (2.25 million liters), and is outfitted with two pumping stations, two storage reservoirs, and transmission and distribution pipelines.

Also in attendance at the ceremony were the Member of Parliament for Westmoreland Western, Morland Wilson; Mayor of Savanna-la-mar and Councillor for Negril Division, Bertel Moore; NWC’s Regional Manager for Westmoreland & Hanover, Jeffrey Smith, and other senior representatives from the NWC and MEGJC.

“The Non Pariel Water Project illustrates what a unified Administration along with the citizens of Jamaica can accomplish. This new system was completed by the Rural Water Supply who was instrumental in the design and implementation, and the National Water Commission operates and maintains the system with the help of the team at the Water Resources Authority,” said Minister Samuda.

Construction of the project commenced in 2018 with the execution of the following contracts:

• A contract for the construction of two (2) Pumping Stations at White Hall and Orange Hill.
• Two (2) pipe laying contracts.
• A contract for the construction of a 1.1 million litres Concrete Reservoir at Mount Airy.
• The installation of 250,000 litres Bolted Steel Reservoir at Orange Hill (Woodland).

Minister Samuda ended that this water system forms part of the Government’s mandate to ensure citizens have access to potable and reliable water and is one of several projects commissioned in the past few months aimed at achieving this plan.

Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation, Hon. Clifford E. Warmington, MP, today broke ground for a $200 million road project that extends from Wakefield to Deeside in Trelawny.

Minister Warmington, who has portfolio responsibility for works, expressed his satisfaction at the ceremony that the first phase of the project will commence after his announcement one year ago.

“I am indeed happy to be here in support of the Member of Parliament to break ground for the project named Falmouth to Springvale. The entire project itself was priced at a little over $800 million, so it will be done in phases. The first phase is from Wakefield to Deeside, where we allocated $200 million for that section. I was here one year ago to announce the project, that we were going to do it, and I am here one year after to break ground for the project and will be back in a few months to cut the ribbon,” he said.

The project’s corridor links communities such as Martha Brae, Granville, Hammersmith, Bounty Hall, Tilston, Peru, Green Park, Friendship, Wakefield, Deeside, Dromilly, and Bunkers Hill. It is also linked to the main town of Falmouth, the Maroon Town in St. James and St. Elizabeth.

Also in attendance were the Member of Parliament for Trelawny North, Tova Hamilton; Councillor for the Wakefield Division, Jonathan Bartley; the National Works Agency Western Regional Manager, Robert Francis; and Contractor for BF Pavement & Consultant, Donovan Bryan.

Minister Warmington noted that this project comes at an opportune time as the condition of the road section had significantly deteriorated, which gave rise to the need for rehabilitation works along this corridor.

He added that the alternate route, which is Martha Brae through Peru, Bunkers Hill, Dromilly to Deeside, was not considered to be a viable option as the condition of the different corridors significantly increased commute time.

Minister Warmington said Ms. Hamilton was instrumental in the commencement of the project through her representation, “We can see that the Member of Parliament through her forcefulness and dedication to the constituency has made the necessary representation and through that, we have been able to address quite a number of roads in her constituency”.

The scope of works includes de-bushing and trimming of banks, earthworks, cleaning of drains, earth drains, outlets, and culverts, construction of catch basins, concrete U & V drains, pavement works, and ancillary roadworks.

It is expected that phase two, which extends from Martha Brae to Bounty Hall, will begin early in the next financial year with another $200 million projected cost.

Between thirty and forty-thousand residents in Eastern St. Mary, and approximately two thousand residents of communities in Montego Bay St. James are currently benefitting from improvements in their supply of water from projects undertaken by the National Water Commission in the two parishes.

They are the Iter Boreale Well Improvement works in Eastern St. Mary and the Torado Heights (Number one and two) Tanks in Montego Bay, St. James.

Speaking at the commissioning of the Iter-Boreale system on Thursday, July 21, 2022, Minister Samuda noted that water is the base of all economic activity and heralds the future growth of the people of St. Mary.

“Economic growth then brings employment, so it then forms the base of future personal growth.  As people get employed they get job opportunities and things get better.  But importantly, they form the basis for human dignity and human health”, the Minister said.

Noting how critical it is for governments to ensure that all citizens have access to potable water, Minister Samuda stressed that there are certain challenges in doing so, among them fiscal constraints .

“I’ve never met an employee at NWC who doesn’t want to provide everybody with 24 hours of potable water at their homes.  There is the fiscal constraint and that is something that we have to confront, and it requires restructuring, it requires new thinking and it requires an expanded non-revenue water programme, similar to the one that we would have launched in Portmore, and one that we would have done some review of in Kingston and St. Andrew”, Minister Samuda noted.

The Minister pointed out that a critical ingredient in the supply of water is energy costs, adding that the National Water Commission, like all other entities and citizens, has faced increased costs due to the increase in oil prices.

“Everytime there is an increase in oil prices, it affects new projects and our ability to move faster to connect new customers or to repair old lines etc.  We have had significant increases just like all citizens in the country, for our power.  This has affected us negatively. It is because of this within the coming weeks I expect cabinet to review and hopefully approve, a plan that will see NWC look to revamp its energy usage at all levels”.

However, Minister Samuda was at pains to point out that persons should not construe this to mean that the NWC is leaving the grid, but rather that the NWC is taking a “hard look”  at its power usage and the possibility of utilizing cheaper sources at some of its plants.

“It does mean that we will have to work with our stakeholders including JPS going forward to ensure that we use the best systems, that we get the best rates and that we are able to change the situation because small changes in that area allow us to do community projects that benefit thousands and thousands of Jamaicans”, the Minister continued.

Noting that the impacts of climate change was another consideration in the provision of water, Minister Samuda pointed out that in May this year, the island received rainfall that was equal to 49 percent of its 30 year average, with St. Mary in Particular, receiving 46 percent of its 30 year average in May.

“If you have less rainfall, if you have increased energy costs, we’re going to have challenges. One of the ways that we are going to beat that challenge is that we are going to have to look at all our systems and we have to take care of the leaky pipes.   We have to put in place a non-revenue water system nationally and its something we are looking at in terms of what the best model is for financing because that is going to be critical as we deal with the ravages of climate change.  There is no way around it.  We won’t be able to lose a drop of water if we are going to manage the changes in weather patterns and that is just the reality” he said.

The Iterboreale System will benefit residents in Islington, Nutsfield, Highgate and several other communities going as far as central St. Mary.

In commissioning the Iterboreale system, Minister Samuda reiterated his concern about the theft of water, which he emphasized during a previous tour on Wednesday July 20, of the Torado Heights Number One and Two tanks in Montego Bay, St. James.

During that tour, Minister Samuda, who was joined by Minister without Portfolio in the Office of the Prime Minister, Hon. Homer Davis,  emphasized that the projects to ensure a steady supply of water to citizens are not cheap, noting for example, that the upgrade to the Torado Heights Number 2 tank represented an investment of $125-million dollars.

“We want to maintain them, we want everybody to have flowing water through their pipes all the time.  But it means that those who are stealing it have to come on to the system legally.  So we are asking and appealing to citizens to come forward if they have information on those stealing water”, the Minister said.

Minister Samuda further noted that the administration over the past six years had done a tremendous amount of technical work in improving the water supply across the country adding that dozens of projects are to come on stream, not only in Western Jamaica, but islandwide.

“You will be seeing a full roll out of water systems, right from here to Westmoreland. To be clear it is islandwide that these developments are taking place.  The NWC, Rural Water, the National Irrigation Commission are working around the clock to ensure that citizens have access to water, potable water in homes, irrigation water in agriculture, we are working around the clock to ensure that persons have it and we are investing behind it”.

The Torado Heights Number One Tank has a 200-thousand gallon capacity, while the capacity of the Number Two tank, which is 90-percent complete,  was quadrupled from 30-thousand gallons to 100-thousand gallons.

“In essence, the government would have put in 300-thousand gallons of storage capacity.  When we checked the system a while ago, since the system has been completed, eight million gallons have been pumped to Flower Hill thus far.  So you are seeing significant benefits and increase in the capacity of the NWC systems in this area”.

The Torado Heights systems will serve customers in Coral Gardens, Flower Hill and Torado Heights with a better, more reliable water supply.

Minister Without Portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation Senator the Hon. Matthew Samuda has stated that water is the driving force for  development and Economic  Activity.

Beyond that however, he noted that water is the driving force for Human dignity. Minister Samuda, who was speaking on Thursday July 7,  at the Commissioning ceremony for the NWC’S $113 million  Luana to Middle Quarters Water Pipeline Project, in St Elizabeth, stated  that for this reason,   commissioning ceremonies are very important to the Government.

“IT is why the Prime Minister has said we must do all we can to connect the pipes”, the  Minister said.

Noting the critical importance of water to people lives,  Minister Samuda made reference to the threat to the nation’s water security by the impacts of climate change, particularly  the declines in rainfall currently being experienced by Portland, Clarendon and St. Elizabeth.

“St Elizabeth has had the largest decline in rainfall over the past 60 days, so we are very cognisant of the issues of those who are connected to water who have not gotten their regular supply.  We will be doing what we need to do to ensure that you get some reprieve,” the Minister said.

He disclosed that for those who depend on other sources, the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation would be working  with it’s partners at Rural Water Supply Limited, the Ministry of Local Government and the municipalities to address their issues.
Minister Samuda emphasized that unlike some Members of Parliament who get excited about money allocated for trucking water, this administración feels no such excitement.

“We get excitement when we are able to turn on the pipes on a Thursday because that means that we return the dignity to our citizens.  It means that we build the base for development.  It means that people have a Human right delivered to them in potable water.  That is what this administración is working for” Minister Samuda noted.

The Luana to Middle Quarters Pipeline Project will benefit approximately 1200 customers in the  communities of  Luana, Baptist Point,  Middle Quarters,  Craigie, Clinic Road, and Sections of New Holland.

Applications are currently being processed for water connections in Rockland, Lancewood and Diligent.

Jamaica has announced its interest in joining the International Alliance to Combat Ocean Acidification.

The announcement was made by Senator the Hon. Matthew Samuda, Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation, following this morning’s Interactive Dialogue at the United Nations Ocean Conference in Lisbon, Portugal, which he co-chaired with the United States Special Envoy for Climate, Secretary John Kerry.

The Alliance was formed by state, local and tribal governments of the U.S. and Canada along with Chile, Nigeria, and France with the aim of working to support the inclusion of ocean health and ocean acidification mitigation, adaptation, and resilience strategies in international climate agreements. This will be accomplished through the adaptation of five goals:

• Advancing scientific understanding of ocean acidification
• Taking meaningful actions to reduce causes of acidification
• Protecting the environment and coastal communities from impacts of a changing ocean
• Expanding public awareness and understanding of acidification, and
• Building sustained support for addressing this global problem

In a call to action by member states during this morning’s Interactive Dialogue entitled “Minimizing and addressing ocean acidification, deoxygenation and ocean warming”, Minister Samuda noted that the “political will (to mitigate climate change) is missing but must be found”.

He noted that as a Small Island Developing State, Jamaica continues to emphasize that the threats posed by climate change not only impact livelihoods but also the long-term impact on the quality of life of present and future generations.

“Carbon dioxide emissions are the main cause of ocean acidification. Greenhouse gases contribute to warming and rising sea levels. It is we humans who generate these excesses…As such, for us to make effective progress in achieving SDG14.3, we must reinvigorate our efforts to fulfill our international climate change commitments as well as those that address pollution. The risks are way too great to be brushed aside – loss of biodiversity, including marine and coastal biodiversity, destruction of habitats, increased food insecurity, disruption of sustainable economic activity, and I could go on”, the minister said.

Minister Samuda emphasized that SIDS are culturally, economically, and socially connected to the ocean and that minor changes in the chemistry of the ocean will have significant ripple effects on species, including commercial species, marine and coastal ecosystems, and water quality.

As such, he told the delegates that Jamaica will remain resolute in its support for collective and integrated ocean action to achieve SDG14.  However, he added that the scientific data is pointing to the fact that not enough has been done.

“For every year, month, or day that we delay, the required actions intensify. Jamaica reaffirms that we all bear the responsibility to ensure that we meet the 1.5⁰C to stay alive and call on our partners to work assiduously with us to that end,” Minister Samuda stated.

The UN has set 10 ocean-related targets to be achieved over this decade, as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.  Among them, actions to prevent and reduce pollution and acidification, protect ecosystems, regulate fisheries, and increase scientific knowledge.

Delegates at the Conference, which ends on July 1, have placed focus on addressing these issues through interactive dialogue.