KINGSTON, JAMAICA, July 9, 2015 -- The National Water Commission (NWC) of Jamaica has announced that it will maximize the efficiency of its water systems in the KSA (Kingston & Saint Andrew) Area, as part of a signed $42.5-million contract with Miya, a wholly owned subsidiary of Arison Investments.
The 5-year co-management project focuses on improving KSA's water distribution system and substantially reducing non-revenue water (NRW), currently estimated at 54 percent. Within five years, most of the current NRW in the KSA-area systems will be saved, estimated in daily savings of more than 70 million liters of fresh water.
Miya is already active in the Caribbean, running a mega 10-year project in the Bahamas. Starting in 2012, Miya returned the water system to its continuous supply within two years, and cut NRW by more than half. This culminates in savings of 16 million liters every day, enabling water production to be reduced by almost 20 percent (see: "Bahamas Gets Tough on NRW").
The NWC supplies drinking water to about 600,000 residents in KSA. One of the main targets of this unique co-management project is to build professional NRW capacity within NWC, while increasing the system efficiency. The project is fully funded by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and includes performance based fees, which will be paid only if contract targets are achieved.
The project includes a comprehensive suite of water-efficiency solutions, incorporating strategic and financial planning, based on efficiency audits of NRW. This will be followed by a water infrastructure improvement phase devised specifically for the area, including the monitoring of water pressure, locating leaks, repairing or replacing selective pipes, and ultimately (after 5 years) handing over responsibility to NWC staff, who will continue to maintain high levels of system efficiency for the long-run.
In cooperation with the Jamaican government and NWC, Miya is also planning to involve the local community in water conservation education programs, equipping people with tools such as a new Smartphone application that improves the connection between citizens and the water authority.
See also:
"Advanced desalination technology brings clean drinking water to Bahamas"
"Seawater desalination plant built in Bahamas resort"
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