Water bill cut – Bog Walk school starts using rainwater harvesting system
October 9, 2019The St. Catherine-based Enid Bennett High School is expecting savings of up to 50 per cent on its annual water bill from the establishment of a $7-million rainwater harvesting system.
Installed by the Rural Water Supply Limited (RWSL), the system comprises 4 one-thousand-gallon black tanks, a twenty-thousand-gallon block and steel tank, a solar-powered pump, and other features to harvest and store water.
Speaking at a ceremony on the school grounds on Tuesday (October 8) to officially commission the system into service, Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation, Senator Pearnel Charles Jr, stated that the harvesting facility “will go a long way in making the school water-secure”.
He noted that the bathrooms and kitchen will be retrofitted with water-saving fixtures in order to conserve on the use of the commodity.
The minister said, while the provision of infrastructure is critical, “the change of attitude towards the use of water is very important, as the commodity must be preserved”.
“There needs to be a complete turnaround in how we use the resource if the structures that we put in are to be maximised,” he added.
Senator Charles, who has responsibility for Water, Housing and Infrastructure, commended the work of the RWSL.
He noted that, in recent years, the entity has provided approximately 40 water solutions for schools, health facilities, infirmaries, and communities across the island. Those include guttering, storage facilities, and other associated infrastructure to enhance the collection and use of rainwater.
Students at Enid Bennett High perform a cultural item at the commissioning of the rainwater harvesting system Senator Pearnel Charles Jr (foreground) commissions the rainwater harvesting system into service at Enid Bennett High. Looking on (from left) are Managing Director of WRA Peter Clarke, teacher at the school Kenneth McNeil, RWSL board member Rhoda Crawford, Managing Director of the RWSL Audley Thompson, and Regional Manager at the National Water Commission Garwaine Johnson. 
Students at Enid Bennett High perform a cultural item at the commissioning of the rainwater harvesting system
Member of Parliament for North Central St. Catherine, Natalie Neita, in her remarks, welcomed the water-harvesting system, noting that it will cater to the school’s long-term water needs.
“This project, I believe, is an awesome one, because it is pointing the way in ensuring that we conserve [water] for the benefit of our population,” she said.
Principal of Enid Bennett High, Patrick Phillips, for his part, said: “It is good that we now have a water-harvesting project where we will not be short of water”.
He informed that the system will also provide water for the school’s farm and playing field.
By Garfield L Angus – Jamaica Information Service
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