Confronting the Challenges of Sewerage Management in Island of Barbados
Master of International Studies
95.803 Business, the Environment and Social Responsibility Lecturer: Rashid Ameer
Discussion paper
Confronting the challenges of sewerage management in Island of Barbados
Name: Tsoy Evgeniy
ID: 2122207
Due Date: Thursday, 14 June, 2012 An exotic and dwelling place of unique phenomenon attracts millions of tourists every year. This is Caribbean, island of Barbados, paradise in the seventh heaven. The idea that the flowery island is under threat of sewage and waste water management beats everyone’s imagination. “Contamination of coastal water and deterioration of coral reefs have been linked to inadequate disposal of waste water” and poor sewerage management. (Inniss, 2000, p. 85) Large amounts of water are being released into by gullies and open drains. People in small sized cities like Barbados come up with improvised systems what are locally known as “suck wells”. Due to lack of suitable alternative, waste water is discharged without any form of treatment into the ocean thereby polluting the water and harming the ecosystem. (Schuster, 2001, p. 14) This in turn affects tourism industry. Tourism is the main source of income in the island and insanitary conditions, which deteriorate Caribbean coral reefs, seriously threaten the economy of Barbados. The major cause of inadequate disposal of water is a power generating facility at Spring Garden which is produces over 80 % of all west coast waste water, around 440 000 m3 per day from its cooling operation. The residential sector and hotels are estimated to produce over 75 % of the total for the south and west coast, whereas industrial sector produces 5 % but this may contain toxic composites. (Inniss, 2000, p. 85) In additional thriving coastal developments, hotel and towns give rise to sewage discharge and sediment which has negative impact on the water and consequently on the health of the people. A population –water equation
95.803 Business, the Environment and Social Responsibility Lecturer: Rashid Ameer
Discussion paper
Confronting the challenges of sewerage management in Island of Barbados
Name: Tsoy Evgeniy
ID: 2122207
Due Date: Thursday, 14 June, 2012 An exotic and dwelling place of unique phenomenon attracts millions of tourists every year. This is Caribbean, island of Barbados, paradise in the seventh heaven. The idea that the flowery island is under threat of sewage and waste water management beats everyone’s imagination. “Contamination of coastal water and deterioration of coral reefs have been linked to inadequate disposal of waste water” and poor sewerage management. (Inniss, 2000, p. 85) Large amounts of water are being released into by gullies and open drains. People in small sized cities like Barbados come up with improvised systems what are locally known as “suck wells”. Due to lack of suitable alternative, waste water is discharged without any form of treatment into the ocean thereby polluting the water and harming the ecosystem. (Schuster, 2001, p. 14) This in turn affects tourism industry. Tourism is the main source of income in the island and insanitary conditions, which deteriorate Caribbean coral reefs, seriously threaten the economy of Barbados. The major cause of inadequate disposal of water is a power generating facility at Spring Garden which is produces over 80 % of all west coast waste water, around 440 000 m3 per day from its cooling operation. The residential sector and hotels are estimated to produce over 75 % of the total for the south and west coast, whereas industrial sector produces 5 % but this may contain toxic composites. (Inniss, 2000, p. 85) In additional thriving coastal developments, hotel and towns give rise to sewage discharge and sediment which has negative impact on the water and consequently on the health of the people. A population –water equation
References: Inniss, V. (2000). Barbados State of the Environment Report. Barbados: Ministry of Physical Development and Environment, Barbados. Retrieved May 25, 2012, from http://www.pnuma.org/deat1/pdf/GEOBarbados2000.pdf Johnson, J Pemberton, C. (n.d.). Financing water and sewerage systems. a caribbean perspective. Retrieved June 3, 2012, from http://www.bvsde.paho.org/bvsacd/cwwa/cecil.pdf Schuster, M., Procee, P., & Mengers H