Acting Director of PWD Dr. Drexel Glasgow (right) and officials from Conservation and Fisheries Department were on the site yesterday to assess the situation. Photo: VINO

This is according to Acting Director of Public Works Department Dr. Drexel Glasgow, who is currently on vacation, joined a team of PWD officials and officials from Conservation and Fisheries Department on site yesterday Wednesday July 27 to assess the situation following calls by the Cane Garden Bay Environmental Action Committee to halt the project citing environmental damages to the beach and coral reefs.

Several catchments are being created to filter the water at various points, while a re-adjustment of the drainage area at the bottom of the hill will now be pushed back several feet to allow more settling area before the water gets into the sea.

“We are here looking to see how we can minimize what is happening here because with the current configuration of the lands, the soil will reach the sea. It’s our jobs now to minimize this reaching here. We are in fact talking to Conservation and Fisheries Department, who are the experts in this area to work together to see what we can do to stop this problem from happening,” Dr. Glasgow told VINO.

The PWD head made it clear that if nothing was done now to address the situation, the damage could have been worst, since the area was already significantly damaged from last year’s heavy rains and the current remedial measures will help significantly to curtail sediments from getting into the sea which had existed from long before the remediation efforts began.

He said presently, they are creating various catchment basins at different points to help reduce sediments from getting to the sea.

“There were two culverts at the top of the hill that we know have been under capacity for a long time that we had to replace. We have replaced those culverts and what is happening now … there are different sediment catchments so that not so much water comes down the hill. That will help significantly reduce some of this material going in the sea. Also at the bottom of the hill, we are creating a couple more of the sediment basins in consultation with Conservation and Fisheries,” he said.

The area at the bottom of Ross Hill. Dr. Glasgow said several sediment catchments have been created to minimise debris and materials from reaching the sea. Photo: VINO

Re-opening of Ponds

The Cane Garden Bay area has four ponds but none are functioning, and many have been calling for the re-opening of those ponds and while that is the best theoretical solution to the problem, Dr. Glasgow said based on their current condition and land ownership, it cannot be done right now.

“This problem didn’t just happen and the people of the community need to understand that they are in fact the originators of this problem. A lot of the ponds which served as filter sediment basins to stop the flow, that’s nature’s way to protect the beaches, they have been filled in and it just so happen that critical ponds at this site have been filled in and a lot of the water ways that would have once filtered these sediments unfortunately were blocked so it’s been forced to different directions,” Dr. Glasgow explained to VINO.

Acting Director of Public Works Department Dr. Drexel Glasgow said solutions are in place to minimise any further damage to the environment from the drainage system. Photo: VINO

He said he supports the best solution but it will also take time to get it done.

“The best theoretical solution is to get the ponds cleared, re-create catchment in the ponds but of course those ponds now belong to people and there will be the challenge of actually getting those lands. It takes further discussions and maybe even legislations to be able to open back those water ways, so while I do support the best solution to get those ponds reopened or recreated so the water can drain there … the best solution is not something that can happen right now. We realize there is a problem and will do the best we can.”

Explaining the Ross Hill drainage project that commenced last year, he said the heavy rains had totally damaged the roads or damaged the water ways and at that time something had to be done to restore drivability to the road and prevent or minimise the flooding that were done to the properties.

“Something was done which was criticizes, however, we were able to come up with a solution which was not completed then but completed now,” Dr. Glasgow noted of the continuation works of that project.

Meanwhile, in a statement issued by the CBG Eco Action Committee on July 26, 2011 following a meeting of the group, they said, “We demand to see any environmental studies on the current plan, as well as any other supporting documents on this project.  We demand to have the project halted before further damage is done.”

The group had further stated that they are very concerned that any heavy rain fall will create excessive flooding, as well as, may result in additional damage to the beach, and further damage to the already damage coral reef and are further concerned that it will be worst as it is the Hurricane season.

In addition, Claude Skelton Cline, 2^nd District candidate and CGB resident had said what such a project does is “it further undermines what we are trying to accomplish in Cane Garden Bay which has been a slow and tragic deterioration of the entire bay area.”

According Pastor Cline, Public Works said it is the least expensive way to address the issue and his position is that it is the most expensive.

“We cannot afford to destroy the very thing we are trying to sell in our tourism product which is white sand, crystal clear water and a bright sunshine. It would have been more feasible and effective to run the drainage to the pond which is nature’s natural way of retaining sediments and debris from the mountains and the road sides,” he had explained to VINO.