WATER WAR

The state-run National Water Commission (NWC) says “negative reactions” from local and international customers and a mistrust of the Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation (KSAMC) have triggered its decision to no longer share water-quality reports with the local authority.

In an April 29, 2025, letter to the KSAMC, CEO Robert Hill, the NWC’s acting vice-president of operations, said the utility company had grave concerns regarding the corporation’s handling of water-quality reports submitted.

The NWC letter, a copy of which was seen by The Gleaner, stated that the KSAMC’s “misrepresentation” of the reports has contributed to widespread public hysteria and undue alarm.

“This has not only undermined the credibility of our operations but has also resulted in significant reputational damage and business disruption. The commission has been required to respond to negative reactions from both local and international customers, many of whom have expressed concern after encountering the circulated reports,” the NWC said.

The entity said that given these developments, it was not confident that future submissions would be handled with the level of care, discretion, and mindfulness that matters of such a technical and public-health nature necessitate.

“Accordingly, the commission has taken the decision to cease the submission of such reports to the KSAMC, effective immediately,” the NWC said.

The utility company said, instead, and in the interest of maintaining transparency and accuracy in the communication of water-quality data, it would rely on the Ministry of Health and Wellness to continue providing necessary reports concerning both NWC-operated systems and facilities under the purview of the municipal corporation.

“We believe this approach will ensure that the dissemination of sensitive environmental and public-health information is managed responsibly and in accordance with established protocols.

“We trust that this position will be respected and understood in light of the recent circumstances and the NWC’s commitment to safeguarding public confidence and the integrity of its operations,” the company said.

The letter was in response to an April 23, 2025, letter from Hill, which noted the KSAMC’s concerns over the absence of the usual members who represented the NWC at the municipal corporation’s Public Health and Sanitation Committee.

The letter from Hill stated that “this is particularly made more acute due to the prevailing public attention and urgency around water quality and the measures, strategies, and responses that are required to ensure that there is clarity, full information, and a general reduction in anxiety”.

The letter also noted that no water-quality report was submitted, asserting that the meeting was starved of critical data that would have aided in the deliberations, supported the necessary analysis, and served to assuage any negative perceptions that would have arisen.

“To this end, I seek your response as to the reason for the absence of your team and when the outstanding report will be submitted,” the letter from Hill stated.

The issue resurfaced at Tuesday’s monthly sitting of the KSAMC after Mayor of Kingston Andrew Swaby disclosed that the NWC would no longer share water-quality data with the municipal corporation following the furore over its internal report in March.

Swaby told councillors that representatives from the NWC had not attended Public Health and Sanitation Committee meetings since it passed a resolution on water quality.

“[The NWC] has since formally indicated that they will no longer be providing water-quality results to the corporation,” Swaby said.

Following the meeting, Swaby told The Gleaner that the NWC said the public disclosure of the information and how it was handled caused the entity “embarrassment”.

He said the corporation intends to respond to the letter from the NWC about the matter.

Opposition People’s National Party Councillor Jesse James Clarke, a microbiology and food-quality lecturer, raised concerns about the safety of the water in Kingston and St Andrew following the NWC report that was shared with the corporation.

Clarke, the KSAMC’s public health committee chairman, said he had seen NWC test results from rural areas that showed contamination.

He said water samples returned a high number of positive results for faecal coliforms, which are types of bacteria that indicate that the water has been contaminated with faeces. Such contamination could pose a serious public-health concern.

However, the NWC asserted that its operations meet the highest safety and quality standards and that its water is “continually monitored, thoroughly tested, and is in full compliance with the guidelines established by the Ministry of Health and Wellness and international best practices set by the World Health Organization”.

kimone.francis@gleanerjm.com