WASCO heightens its monitoring and surveillance in the South in light of Volcanic Activity in St. Vincent

The Water and Sewerage Company Inc. (WASCO) is seeking to address public concerns about the possible impact of volcanic activity on St Lucia’s water resources. The concern comes following news from the seismic research unit in Trinidad regarding the eruption of La Soufriere Volcano on Thursday April 8th 2021 in St Vincent and the Grenadines.

In response to the current situation, WASCO wishes to stress that our monitoring and surveillance of the water resources particularly in the south of the island are now heightened. This is due to that fact that the raw water sources may be impacted by volcanic ash, since many of them are exposed to the elements.

Volcanic ash contains high levels of minerals that affect the water’s PH and turbidity levels. In order to address these issues, WASCO’s response will include the flushing of any affected system to remove contaminants and a review of its treatment process where necessary.

While the effect of a shutdown of the water system is not lost on WASCO, especially as the dry season progresses, customers are encouraged to ensure that they have adequate storage in case our control systems need to be activated. Already, low flows are being registered at our intakes in the south.

In addition, customers are urged to take personal responsibility by initiating conservation practices to avoid the inconvenience of a service interruption.