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Basseterre, Saint Kitts and Nevis, 26 October 2022- Efforts to improve the availability of freshwater resources and ensure water resource efficiency in Saint Kitts and Nevis are underway thanks to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the Caribbean Development Bank, FAO’s Investment Centre, the Government of Mexico and the Government of Saint Kitts and Nevis. 

As part of the ‘Addressing the Water-Energy Nexus in Agriculture’ sub-project of the Mexico-CARICOM-FAO Initiative “Cooperation for Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience in the Caribbean” or Resilient Caribbean Initiative in short, FAO together with the Ministry of Agriculture and Ministry of Sustainable Development have begun the process of validating 40 potential water harvesting and water intake (drainage) sites across the twin-islands. 

Commencing on 11 October 2022 in the area of Fahies, Saint Kitts, the assessment team including personnel from the GIS Lab of the Physical Planning Department carried out assessment procedures to determine if the pre-selected sites would be suitable for rainwater harvesting (i.e. the establishment of rainwater reservoirs) to supply water for the irrigation of crops, livestock and other activities. FAO’s Investment Centre engaged the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT)/Alliance Bioversity International in developing a web-based tool to identify potential rainwater harvesting sites for irrigation purposes on several Caribbean islands including Saint Kitts and Nevis.

This exercise to validate sites will strengthen the resilience of the island’s water resources. Like most Caribbean countries, Saint Kitts and Nevis has a small land mass, with limited catchment basins, creating limitations in the replenishment of freshwater resources. There is a lack of availability of surface water throughout the year with high dependence on limited amounts of groundwater, which usually requires fossil fuel energy to extract. The pressure on available natural resources is likely to increase in the near future due in large part to the intensifying impacts of climate change, which is causing a rise in sea levels, decreased freshwater quality due to intense storms and more frequent and severe droughts. 

To address these issues, the project further promotes technological innovations, such as solar-powered (micro) irrigation systems to improve water efficiency and management and access to clean and renewable energy (solar and wind), to increase agricultural productivity and efficiency in water use.

FAO’s National Project Coordinator, Conrad Kelly indicated, “Water shortage in St. Kitts and Nevis is a major food production constraint. Therefore, identifying and validating suitable sites for rainwater harvesting is a very important first step toward establishing storage reservoirs to supply irrigation water for farmers. Once coupled with efficient irrigation systems powered by renewable energy, the expected outcome would be increased food productivity and food diversity.”

Head of the Crops Division in the Ministry of Agriculture, Ian Chapman emphasised the importance of this exercise

“These water harvesting and intake sites are within the most vital areas for food production, which are of critical importance to us as our current production system is over 80% depended on rain-fed conditions. The rainwater harvesting and water intake sources would improve the availability of food over a greater period, ensuring access to water during the drier season of production through improved storage facilities and efficient irrigation systems. Moreover, this venture will allow for more crop scheduling resulting in more market access over a longer period and ultimately improving the livelihoods of our farmers. We are most grateful to our partners FAO, the Caribbean Development Bank, the Government of Mexico and CIAT for this engagement exercise.”

The validation of Potential Rainwater Harvesting Sites on St. Kitts and Nevis will continue throughout  October and is expected to be completed by mid- November. Following field validation in participating countries, CIAT will finalize the development of the web-based-tool and conduct training for national Ministry and other institutional staff in the use of the tool for planning of rainwater reservoirs and the eventual distribution of water to the farms.

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A major landslip along the Penal Rock road, through the teak fields is now impassable to vehicles. Photo by Lincoln Holder

Members of the disaster management unit (DMU) of the Penal/Debe Regional Corporation spent hours helping burgesses affected by the flooding on Thursday evening and Friday, said the corporation’s chairman.

Dr Allen Sammy said many people were stranded in their homes, and the DMU was on standby to help pump out water.

“People asked for assistance to pump water from their homes, and they are getting that. A few trees also fell. We have the usual problems. Flooding in Penal/Debe is no longer a big deal to the public because it is so frequent. It does not make it right,” Sammy said.

Photo by Lincoln Holder

“The thing is people are suffering tremendously. Parts of the Penal Rock Road were impassable.”

The chairman added that the Poodai Lagoon at Goodman Trace was flooded.

“We made efforts to clean it during the day. That lagoon falls under the Agriculture Ministry, but the people always call us because no other agency more as quickly as we do.”

When Newsday visited Penal and Debe, there were several street/flash flooding in low-lying areas in light of the bad weather.

Near the Kubairsingh Penal Rock Road Hindu Primary School, water flowed across the road and into nearby rivers. Within a few hours, the water subsided.

Several other parts of the Penal Rock Road, like near Goodman Trace and Crawford Trace, were flooded.

There were also pockets of flooding at Gopie Trace and Suchit Trace.

On Friday afternoon, the (Meteorological Service) Met Office downgraded the weather alert from orange to yellow level.

The Met Office calls on people to refrain from wading or driving through flood waters.

It also advised people to monitor weather conditions and river levels.

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Government will be enforcing harsher penalties for those guilty of using illegal firearms.

During his presentation on the Firearms (Amendment) Bill 2022 on Friday, Attorney General Dale Marshall announced offenders could possibly face life imprisonment if found guilty of using an illegal firearm in more than one crime.

The Attorney General explained that according to the amended legislation that a first-time offender can receive a minimum of 10 years, however, an individual on their second or subsequent offence can be sentenced to life imprisonment.

“We say in this particular bill that a person who’s been found guilty of an offence, of a fireable offence, shall on conviction on indictment, in the case of a first offence, be sentenced to imprisonment for not less than 10 years, and not more than 20. In the case of a second or subsequent offence, be sentenced to imprisonment for life, sir, or a lesser term not being 20 years,” Marshall stated.

The Attorney General indicated that exceptions will be made in certain cases, such as if the offender was under the age of 18 at the time.

“The judge can impose imprisonment of a lesser term, if the person who committed the offence was under the age of 18, at the time of the commission of the offence.

“If the person who committed the offence has not been previously convicted of an indictable offence of a violent nature…or if the court is of the opinion that there are other exceptional circumstances relating to the offence, or to the person convicted of the offence, this justifies us not doing so,” he shared.

Marshall also declared that under the amendment, offenders will now serve sentences consecutively.

“[The Act] says this notwithstanding any law to the contrary a sentence of imprisonment imposed on a person convicted of an indictable offence under this Act shall be served consecutively to any other sentence of imprisonment imposed for an offence arising out of the same event or a series of events.

So the bottom line is if you find yourself convicted of more than one offence under this Act, we’re not saying you’re going to prison for this term, we’re saying you’re serving two terms – one after the next,” he revealed.

“You are man enough to commit two offences, well feel two sets of punishment – consecutively.”

The Attorney General asserted that the Government will not be handling criminals with care or “softly”. He stressed that this will be further evidenced with the Firearms (Amendment) Bill 2022.

“People are saying ‘oh y’all, y’all soft’. No Sir. We are not soft anymore. We never were soft but the point is, we are saying now that our level of tolerance for the criminal and his foolishness has now vanished to the point where we are prepared to say that you can be subject to a sentence of life imprisonment on a second firearm offence,” he emphasised.

“… it’s not just about punishing the individual, it has to be about sending a message to people who may feel that they can do this and get away with it,” Marshall continued.

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The gun and packet of cocaine found by police after a chase through El Socorro. A 28-year-old Barataria man was shot by police during the chase. Photo courtesy TTSP

A Barataria man who police said was transporting drugs and a gun, is warded in a serious condition at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex after police shot him on Friday morning.

Police said at about 11.50 am officers assigned to the North Eastern Division Gang and Intelligence Unit were on patrol when they heard a brown Nissan B14 was transporting narcotics and a gun.

They later saw the car speeding near the Maritime Roundabout, Morvant. It slammed into a marked police car along the Churchill Roosevelt Highway.

The officer chased the car, following it into El Socorro. Police said the car hit several other vehicles as the driver tried to evade the police.

They said twice the driver pointed a gun at them and the second time, they shot back. The 28-year-old man, from Seventh Street, Barataria crashed into a wall along Jogie Road.

Police later found a loaded gun and cocaine wrapped in black tape in the car.

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