The fast-tracking of the Sheriff Street/Mandela Avenue Road Expansion project may cause an increase in the frequency of disruptions of water supply to customers in Central Georgetown, the Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI) has cautioned.
GWI CEO Shaik Baksh (centre) on site at Mandela Avenue, Georgetown where old pipelines are to be decommissioned
In this project, which was delayed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, over seven kilometres of transmission and distribution pipelines from the carriageways of the expanded roads would be replaced. Due to the delay, more interconnections to the new pipelines need to be accomplished in a shorter period.
The pipelines to be relocated on both sides of the carriageway are sections of ring mains with over 107 connection points (tees) which distribute water into the streets and wards of the city.
When the new pipelines have been relocated, the old pipelines in the carriageways would be decommissioned and water supply would be transferred to the new pipelines. During this process, water supply to customers of Central Georgetown would either be reduced or completely stopped after the public has been informed.
This is especially done when the transfer includes transmission lines which range between 10 inches and 16 inches in diameter, since high flows from the pipeline would hinder work execution by the craftsmen.
Chief Executive Officer of the Guyana Water Incorporated, Shaik Baksh, has stressed the importance of the project for the improvement of water supply in the capital city.
“We are working closely with the contractors, and a special team has been assigned to ensure that the works progress smoothly. It’s our aim to ensure that water supply disruptions are at a minimum during this process,” he stated.
Challenges which may affect the supply of water to customers include extra care which must be taken in handling pipelines which are over 60 years old, and account for more than fifty percent of the old pipes from which the water supply is transferred to the new pipelines.
Another cause for disruption of water supply in Central Georgetown is the Shelter Belt/Lamaha Street 22-inch Transmission Line upgrade project, which replaces an 18-inch cast iron (CI) pipe which is over 60 years old.
