I bring you warm greetings from the Prime Minister and my fellow Cabinet colleagues. I have been asked to extend sincere regrets from your Member of Parliament, Minister Obie Wilchcombe, for his absence as a result of government business on behalf of his portfolio the Ministry of Tourism.
As Minister of Public Works, Utilities and Bahamasair, I have come on behalf of my government to speak to you on this occasion concerning the Bimini Harbour and the availability of portable drinking water.
BIMINI HARBOUR DREDGING
Firstly, my government is acutely aware of the problems associated with the Harbour of Bimini. The Government of the Bahamas in the year 2000 executed a contract for the dredging of the Bimini Harbour. However, due to various storms the inlet has progressively filled in, prohibiting navigation in the harbour.
However, I am pleased to announce today that my government has received a proposal for conducting a coastal engineering analysis of the area. This analysis is inclusive of the preparation of a base map from aerial photography, tide and current measurements, jet probes and hydrographic surveys. This base map along with a hydrodynamic model, coastal and sediment analysis will provide the necessary data to develop alternative engineering solutions for short and long term harbour management. I am advised that the necessary works needed to resolve this vexing problem will be expensive but will bring a long lasting solution.
The band-aid approach in the past was a dismal failure. Your Progressive Liberal Party Government will address this as a priority matter. My Ministry is presently reviewing the proposal and my government proposes to execute an agreement before the end of the year.
REVERSE OSMOSIS PLANT
The second reason for my visit on this delightful occasion is in view of the fact that the residents of Bimini and all those who visit this idyllic Bahamian island is acutely aware of how important water is to a small environment such as Bimini. Being without rivers or freshwater lakes, the only way for Biminites to ensure that adequate water is available for basic living functions is to catch rainwater or use wells to access water beneath one’s property.
However, rainfall is erratic and unpredictable and it costs a handsome sum of money to store large amounts of water in a suitable and safe container. Likewise, wells in such a small and densely populated island such as Bimini are at risk of becoming saline and polluted. This kind of water is really not fit for portable purposes.
This reality caused the then Government of the Bahamas to install a pipe water system in North Bimini in 1970, thus water was provided by means of a desalination plant. This facility in Bimini was the first desalination plant installed in any Family Island. However, its operation was short lived and in 1974 it was shut down because of maintenance problems.
In order to maintain a water supply, a delicate and limited freshwater resource along the airstrip on South Bimini was developed in 1975. However, I have been advised that because production levels exceeded the capability of the resource, high salinity levels started to appear in the early 1980’s and this supply soon became undrinkable subsequently used for non-portable purposes.
As you would know only too well, this left Biminites with the only options of returning to the use of rainwater tanks and purchased bottled water from Atlantis Spring, a private water producer or from the Big Game Fishing Club. Again as you would know, this is how Biminites provided water for themselves for almost 20 years. This was not a satisfactory solution as salty water is corrosive and plumbing fixtures in the houses were deteriorating at unacceptable rates.
A return to desalination seems to be the only sensible solution and that is what my government is intending to do. Fortunately, technology has improved since 1971 and today, reverse osmosis is considered the most practical method of converting seawater into portable water for an island such as Bimini.
Rav Bahamas Limited and Aqua Design Bahamas Limited, a subsidiary of Ionics Inc, have joint ventured to form, Bimini Bay Water Ltd. They have built an appropriate reverse osmosis plant and I am advised that it is capable of providing 125,000 gallons per day of high quality water. I have also been advised that this plant can easily be expanded to produce more water when it is needed and that with the expert technical capabilities of Aqua Design and Ionics Groups, operational problems should not be a problem. Likewise, I have been informed that if the plant has to be shut down for routine maintenance, there is adequate storage available to continue providing normal service for a number of days.
There are many other islands in the Bahamas like Bimini that require water produced by reverse osmosis. It is my government’s intention to continue to implement similar facilities. Inagua is next and expected to be operational before Christmas and then Long Island and others will follow. It should be worthy of note that this high quality water is a good deal more expensive to produce than the use of natural resources. The cost to my portfolio of the Water and Sewerage Corporation will be more than the cost to the consumer. Therefore, the difference in cost has to be subsidized by my government and subsequently, you and I the taxpayer.
Hence, it is necessary that residents and all other users take on the responsibility of paying their water bills because my government will not be able to subsidize the total cost of the service. Out of the necessity of water and the cost involved, it’s imperative that all persons pay their bills, or regretfully action will have to be taken. This same responsibility of users having to pay their share of water bills will likewise apply to persons in Inagua and Long Island. My government hopes that in due course Family Islands will be benefiting from desalinated water and will in turn be paying equal water rates.
My government realizes the value of water and we are sure that Biminites do also. It is therefore both my government and the resident’s responsibility to ensure that water bills are paid. We all are aware that man can live without many things, but mankind cannot live without water. And while as Minister, I cannot stress enough the need to be responsible for the cost of water services, nevertheless, those less fortunate persons will always have access to water, though it may be by means of standpipes. This too will be subsidized by my government.
Therefore, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, it gives my government a great deal of pleasure to bring a long tem program for quality and drinkable water to Bimini. And it is my government’s intention to follow up on this achievement by doing the same elsewhere in the Bahamas as a matter of priority.
On behalf of the government, the Ministry of Works and the Water & Sewerage Corporation, I extend my gratitude and thanks for your participation in the commissioning of the reverse osmosis plant. Bimini we love you, thank you very much.
Remarks By Minister Of Public Works, Utilities & Bahamasair
Bradley B. Roberts, Mp
