MOST OF Jamaica's pure water sources are rated at international standards, but the quality of the rural supply stock is causing the water authorities some concern.
Other countries are grappling with the preservation of their water sources, but manager of the Water Resources Authority, Basil Fernandez, says 95 per cent of Jamaica's stock is deemed to be of the best quality in the region, based on water sample studies done here.
The overall quality is good, he said, but there are some sections of the rural areas that are not on par.
Contamination of the supply comes from a number of sources, but is usually detected mostly in the areas where the alumina/bauxite sectors are located such as Ewarton in St. Catherine, Kirkvine and Nain in St. Elizabeth, said Fernandez.
But the waste from the rum and sugar production also serve to contaminate water in Maggotty, St. Elizabeth, Monymusk in Clarendon and Frome, Westmoreland; and runoffs from hillsides, improper or unplanned housing, and poor farming practices also present environmental problems that impact water sources.
Some industries are taking mitigating steps. The bauxite sector, for example, has introduced a new disposal system to recycle its effluent; while the Water Authority is collaborating with the sugar industry on an alternative disposal system for dunder that involves diluting the waste with water and using it for irrigation purposes, says Fernandez, speaking with JIS News.
The excessive use of pesticides and chemicals by farmers, also does its fair share of damage, when run-off washes into the rivers, according to Don Streete, Manager of the Quality Control Assurance Environment and Chlorination at the National Water Commission.
"One of the disadvantages when water becomes contaminated is that oftentimes farmers do not know it, as the water is still clear....part of the concern is that they are not aware of their actions," he pointed out.
Streete said Government was trying to address this problem through the 'Ridge to Reef' project, which was implemented two years ago to improve the Great River Watershed located across the bordering parishes of Hanover, St. James and St. Elizabeth.
