It was disappointing to residents of East End and Long Look to hear Minister for Communications and Works Hon. Mark. H. Vanterpool tell the House of Assembly during the Ninth sitting of the second session of the second house of assembly of the Virgin Islands on Tuesday May 14, 2013 that a strategy to address the problem of sewerage is still hanging. Photo: VINO/File

Long has been the wait of residents of the communities of East End and Long Look to have the problem of sewerage addressed but to date the responsible Ministry has not come up with a concrete strategy and plan to fix the problem once and for all. Photo: VINO/File

Persons of the two communities have been using every possible forum to plead with the National Democratic Party (NDP) and more directly the Ministry of Communications and Works to have the problem addressed. Several such pleas were made at a joint Seventh and Eighth Districts meeting some months ago and which was attending by almost all the ministers of government as well as Premier and Minister of Finance Dr the Honourable D Orlando Smith.

At that meeting, Representative of the Eighth District Hon. Marlon A. Penn and Minister for Communications and Works Honourable Mark H. Vanterpool had assured that the situation of sewerage is on the top of the list of priority for the government.

It was disappointing to residents of the two communities with whom Virgin Islands News Online spoke to that Hon. Vanterpool had the audacity to stand in the House of Assembly during the Ninth sitting of the second session of the second house of assembly of the Virgin Islands on Tuesday May 14, 2013 and declare that a strategy to address the problem is still hanging.

It took the questioning of the Third District Representative, Hon. Julian Fraser, RA to un-earth the status of the problem. The question was asked by Hon. Fraser as to what was the scheduled completion date for the East End/Long Look and the Road Town Sewerage Projects.

Part of Hon. Vanterpool's response was "because of the government’s commitment to solving the issue of proper sewerage disposal throughout the Territory and more so in the East End/Long Look areas and Road Town, we have been working feverishly to finalise the strategy and plans to address these outstanding issues. We expect to have a finalised plan of action within the next ninety days."

The estimated cost to complete the East End/Long Look and Road Town Sewerage projects is approximately $25M. Of this amount, $5,750,000 has been budgeted for works this year for the balance of the project. Hon Vanterpool said that the Ministry of Finance will be seeking funding sources.

"That is chalk to cheese because it was almost the same thing he said when he went to the meeting in there (Long Look)," said a obviously frustrated resident of Long Look. Persons who shared their opinion with this news site have opted not to be named as most of them work in the Ministry of Communications and Works while others have other interests that allegedly stand to be jeopardised through possible victimisation.

In his response, the Honourable Minister had also stated that the Ministry's team has sat with the consultant's team (CBE) and has established a full programme schedule to execute all of the construction works under the scope of the Consultant's contract. He told the House of Assembly during Tuesday's sitting that because of the importance of the ongoing crisis, they have established an ambitious date of early December to complete that phase of the works.

"Madam Speaker it is important to note that the scope of the current works does not include establishing a force main from Long Swamp to Paraquita Bay and along Waterfront Drive to Burt Point, conveyance of the treated effluent and construction of sewerage treatment facilities," he had said.

Residents are of the opinion that because the East End area is one of the main entry points to the Territory, the situation should be addressed with much more urgency. "Standing up in there with all their fancy talk is nothing. Get the problem fixed fast, they can do it but their priority not in the right place. This place stinks and I believe its nature’s little secret to nastiness," one resident remarked.

Others, including mainly mothers, said the sewerage problem in the area is the main contributory factor to a number of health problems experienced by residents and more so children. "I can't send my child in the yard to play all because of the overflowing filthy water from the sewerage system. But when he goes to school is like I better put him to play in the yard because I know is the nasty road he walks to come home that got these things on his skin and got me running to skin doctor," said one woman.