The government says it’s working to deliver water to residents in parts of St. Ann and St. Mary, amid the worsening drought.
The two parishes, along with Portland, have seen a steep decline in supply at NWC facilities across several communities.
In a statement on Wednesday, Water Minister, Matthew Samuda, says the government is accelerating critical water infrastructure works in the two parishes in the coming weeks.
This, while major investments are also strengthening water security across the eastern end of the island.
Minister Samuda says work being done on the Minard Wells in Brown’s Town, St. Ann, and the Agualta Vale Wells in St Mary could provide significant reprieve to communities currently affected by water shortages.
At the same time, Samuda says major investments are being advanced in the eastern and central corridors of the island.
He says the Rio Cobre Water Treatment Plant is under construction and is projected to be completed in May 2027.
Samuda says this will add about 15 million gallons of water to the Kingston, St. Andrew, Portmore and Spanish Town corridor.
He adds that the government has also invested approximately $3 billion in new transmission infrastructure to move water from the Tulloch Spring while reducing losses.
Additional works include replacing a transmission main serving Portmore, constructing a $1.2 billion to $1.3 billion transmission main from Ferry to Rockfort to improve supply to elevated communities in Red Hills, and further infrastructure upgrades around Washington Boulevard and Wellington, Monroe and Seaview.
