Negril to get US$221 million water supply system

WESTERN BUREAU:

Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett says the resort town of Negril, which has been plagued by a perennial shortage of water, is to get a transformative US$221 million water supply system early in the 2025-2026 fiscal year.

This, he says, should ensure a consistent and reliable supply of potable water.

“This is perhaps the biggest investment the government of Jamaica will make in water development, creating a system that will ensure adequate water supply for the West End, and surrounding areas,” said Bartlett.

According to a survey by the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association’s (JHTA) Negril Chapter, the water crisis has affected future bookings for hotels and resorts in the popular township. More than 70 per cent of accommodation providers reported that the water crisis impacted future bookings, and 100 per cent of hoteliers said it affected them financially.

By May last year, accommodation stakeholders in Negril, which straddles the parishes of Westmoreland and Hanover, said they had spent over $200 million on trucking water, which amounts to more than 50 per cent of the usual water costs.

However, speaking at last weekend’s opening of the Red Stripe Experience at Rick’s Café, Bartlett said that 24 per cent of Jamaica’s tourism earnings come from Negril, so the government is now giving back to Negril with the US$221 million water supply system.

Bartlett said the procurement process has begun, and construction will start within three months. It will see Negril being connected with the water supply from Martha Brae in Trelawny to Great River, in Hanover, and Bulstrude, and Roaring River, in Westmoreland.

In October, Savanna-la-Mar’s Mayor Danree Delancy raised concerns about the water shortage in Negril and Westmoreland in general and urged the government to address the crisis. Amid outcry, the government in May last year announced a $24.8billion water-resilience project to relieve the water woes in Negril and western parishes.

The first phase of this programme involves installing and replacing two main transmission pipelines from the Martha Brae Water Treatment Plant to the Terminal Reservoir in St James, and from the Great River Water Treatment Plant on the St James/Hanover border to Negril. The pre-engineering phase commenced at a cost of $32 million and was estimated to last six weeks before the full project rollout.