Letter of the Day | Protect our rivers!

THE EDITOR, Madam:

In the late ‘30s and early ‘40s when sugarcane was the primary export crop out of Jamaica, the typical production season would start with the cleaning of the factory machines and materials needed to do the work. The wastewater from this process would end up polluting the Cabarita River. Periodically during the production of sugar, the waste that resulted from this process was also diverted into the Cabarita River, causing much hardship for the people who lived downstream. In those days, pollution triggered protests from the residents who formerly lived in what is now called Egypt Gardens and surrounding areas. These protests never accomplished much, eventually fading into obscurity. The area between Savanna-la-Mar and Little London was originally swamp land. It was drained, through the use of two man-made canals, in order to provide more viable land for planting more sugar cane.

In the declining years of sugar plantations and sugar production, rice was seen as an alternative crop which could potentially replace the sugar cane crop. However, the water needed to flood the land, for the growing of the rice was supposed to be extracted from the Cabarita River via the two canals. The water was found to be full of pollution from the waste generated by years of sugar cane production. As a result of this, big boulders were installed at the head of these canals with the intention of making the pollution from the factory flow into the Cabarita River.

The Roaring River and the Cabarita River, along with their tributaries, provide most of the water used by the people residing in central Westmoreland. With the abundance of clean fresh water, those who are blessed with living in proximity to these rivers have lived their lives depending on the rivers for their survival. The people of rural Westmoreland are accustomed to National Water Commission lockoffs for months at a time over many years. They are left with no alternative but to use the water from these two main rivers for their daily needs. This includes water for home use, for bathing, for washing clothes, and for agricultural use. Many people earn their living from fishing in these rivers.

These rivers are also a source of tourist-related income for the residents in and around the areas adjoining the rivers. Polluting the rivers will not only kill the fish and cause a disruption in livelihood but will turn away tourists and their financial contributions to the prosperity of these communities. The pollution of the Rio Cobre that residents of St Catherine have been enduring will not be tolerated in Central Westmoreland. This letter is a forewarning from the people living above Frome, Blackness, Barham, Friendship and the surrounding areas that they are very protective of their rivers and are not going to allow them to be polluted by any bamboo factory or anyone leaking any amount of chemical runoff into the rivers.

NAM SINGH