Boats idle on the Black River. Sections of Black River are heavily polluted, water-safety officials have said. - Ian Allen/Photographer

According to the Water Resources Authority (WRA), several of the country's 20 major rivers are choking from pollution or are at risk of drying up because of constant abuse from users.

One of the main rivers under severe pressure is the Black River in St Elizabeth, which is one of the country's longest and most important rivers. It has been recognised as a Ramsar site for its economic, cultural, scientific and recreational value.

Environmental officer at the WRA, Michelle Watts, said that despite the system's ecological significance to the area, Black River has been a "suffering river" for a number of decades, due to immense pollution.

Watts says the area which is most affected is the North Helim River, which feeds into the upper Black River.

She said the Cabarita River in Westmoreland, the Rio Cobre in St Catherine and the Hope River in St Andrew were also affected by occasional pollution.

"We are having a number of pollution problems in the Black River system and it's associated with a number of factories in the area, particularly the upper Black River section," she said.

This is mainly linked to the location of two particular factories - a rum distillery and a sugar factory - in the Ruahine and Maggotty areas.

She said both companies were being challenged to better manage waste released into the environment.

Watts told The Gleaner that for decades the factories would simply dump their waste directly into the Black River. However, since 2000, the companies have agreed to construct two ponds in which the wastewater is contained.

However, because of high levels of rainfall in the area and the large volume of waste, contaminants from the factories simply wash back into the river whenever it rains.

That section of the river is unable to sustain fish. Residents are also unable to use the water for domestic purposes.

Over the years, the WRA said it has witnessed major fish kills in the area.

"We know it supports and can support large fish populations, but it doesn't, because of the pollution.

"When it (the river) overflows, it washes into a sinkhole and comes back up into a spring, which is completely polluted," Watts explained.

That section of the Black River has been polluted for so many decades, according to Watts, that the residents no longer use the water.

"There are communities that live right around it, and clearly they would be relying on it if it were clean," she added.

Final decision

Watts said the WRA believes the situation has gone on for far too long, pointing out that the agency is working closely with the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA) and the factories to address the problem. She said the WRA is currently awaiting NEPA's final decision on the matter.

"The WRA's view is that containing the waste is not good enough, because the high rainfall is a challenge, as well as the volumes of waste that they have to contain."

She said the WRA has been evaluating the situation for a number of years and has found that the current situation is not acceptable and untenable.

"Actually, we were never satisfied that it would work, but it was allowed on a trial basis, and we are convinced that it is not the best solution, as pollution incidents will just keep reoccurring," said Watts.

"Our recommendation is that they be required to construct a full wastewater treatment system because they produce very strong waste, which proves to be a danger to life forms in the river."

Watts said factories that generate wastewater need to recognise that they must treat their waste.

"No longer can the environment just accept the waste. It is accumulating, so they must decide to spend the money that is required to build a treatment plant."

She said sewage is also another major threat to the country's river systems, as some dysfunctional sewage plants are leaking effluent into the natural environment. This is the case for sections of Hope River.

Sections of the Rio Cobre and Cabarita River are also under threat from similar activities by factories.

Havoc

There is, however, hardly any legislation geared at tough sanctions on companies whose operations wreak such havoc on the environment.

Watts said a new rule, with an arsenal of penalties, was in the pipeline. The Polluter Pays Principle, she said, states that companies should be hit in their bank books when guilty of pollution.

"Right now, how we operate is that we require the responsible companies to fix the problem at their expense," she said.

Watts said, on a general note, that Jamaica's rivers were generally in good shape.

"However, in the last 15-20 years, we have become more aware of some of the threats and the extent of the pollution problems, because we have been studying them a bit more."

She continued: "So we recognise that we are losing more and more groundwater, but it is still a relatively small proportion. But if we ignore it and continue how we are going, in no time we will be in trouble."

athaliah.reynolds@gleanerjm.com

A boy reverse-somersaults into the Black River in Maggotty, St Elizabeth. - Photos by Ian Allen/Photographer