AGRICULTURE Minister Robert Persaud is exhorting all crucial sectors of society to play a critical role in addressing issues of disaster management.

He made the appeal at a recent symposium on climate change and flood management on the coast of Guyana held at the Regency Suites Hotel, Hadfield Street, Georgetown.

The three hour discussion organized by the National Climate Unit (NCU) and the National Climate Committee (NCC) sought to raise awareness and increase national capacity to deal with the global natural phenomenon.

Persaud offered that some of the basic measures to minimise the impact of the problem include the building of homes higher above ground, keeping the environment, especially the water ways clean and strict adherence to the drainage and irrigation schedules in farming communities.

He said while Guyana is not a gross contributor to the phenomenon it expected to undergo major adaptive changes including temperature rise, intense periods of rainfall, longer dry periods, and sea level rise of more than one foot by the end of the century as the extreme weather events unfold.

The minister explained that these will negatively affect the bio-physical environment, health, economy and people’s life style.

“We are currently experiencing an increased global food demand coupled with high prices and extreme climate events account for a significant reduction of agricultural food production,” Persaud stressed.

He pointed out that flooding is one of the telling effects of the unseasonable weather pattern because the local drainage and irrigation system which was built more than 100 years was not designed to cope with the rapid evolving threat of climate change.

The drainage system discharges about 1.5 to 2 inches of rainfall in 24hrs against some days when as much as four to six inches have been recorded.

“The flooding events in 2005 and 2006 demonstrated the urgent need to

re-examine the existing drainage system with the aim of improving its infrastructure to cope with the negative impacts of climate change,” he said.

Current interventions
Persaud disclosed that his Ministry’s Drainage Master Plan takes into full account the effects of the global phenomenon. That initiative, he pointed out includes the allocation of considerable resources as well as changes in the way farmers and others handle D&I Infrastructures.

Government this year will be spending in excess of $ 2.8B in the D&I sector to widen key drainage relief canals, improvement of water flow systems within conservancies, construction of additional drainage pump stations and continuous dredging of canals and outfall channels to ensure the system functions at maximum capacity.

According to Persaud work will also be done to expand the drainage system to cope with the increase in agricultural activities.

He said that some of the major activities within the drainage & irrigation sector to address the phenomenon are:

* the implementation of the Conservancy Adaptation Project (CAP) financed under the Global Environmental Fund which will see significant improvement in the operation and implementation of the flood control structures within the East Demerara Water Conservancy (EDWC);

* the construction of additional drainage outlets at Westbury and Golden Fleece financed under the European Union (EU) Rice Competitiveness Project to increase drainage capacity from 1.5 to three inches per day. Also, the rehabilitation of the Dawa Pump Station which will ensure irrigation requirements are met for approximately 50,000 acres of farmland within Annandale/Cozier in Region 2 (Pomeroon/Supenaam);

* major rehabilitation of 516 miles of canals and drains including pump stations, structures and drainage outlets in Regions 3, 4 and 6 financed by Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) under the Agriculture Support Services Programme (ASSP) to further improve discharge flows and

* negotiations are with the Japanese Government and Donor Agencies to finance new D&I infrastructure within the conservancies and Mahaica/Mahaicony areas commonly referred to as the MMA 2 project. He said negotiations are ongoing and that initiative will not only mitigate the negative impacts of climate change, but will open-up a vast amount of arable lands.

The minister said, in addition to these measures, government has recognized the importance of an early warning system and the following programmes are being implemented in this regard.

(1) The installation of the Doppler Weather Radar. He pointed out that the construction of the tower is progressing smoothly and will be in operation by the end of 2008. The Doppler weather radar will allow weather forecasters within the Ministry to:

* increase precision in defining the areas where severe weather is likely to form;

* identify the characteristic patterns indicating a high Probability of severe thunderstorms;

* improve accuracy in forecasting the time, intensity and location of heavy rainfall.

2. The expansion of the Hydrometeorological monitoring network to improve weather and climate prediction as well as scientific research.

3. The training of weather forecasters and hydrological technicians in the Hydrometeorological discipline. According to Persaud a group is being trained at the World Meteorological Organization Regional training centre in Barbados.

“Training of Staff to cope with these realities is essential. This is not only needed for flood prevention but also for flood management and

effective water controls. We will continue to link with international parties for support, he assured.

Persaud underscored that strategies are also being examined to take care of damages caused by the sometimes inevitable reality — flooding in low-lying areas. This he emphasized is most necessary given the rising food prices and shortages in some countries.

Flood insurance
The minister said that Guyana is now demanding that floods be covered under the Caribbean Catastrophe Insurance. He pointed out that the feasibility study for that initiative started in March and will be completed by next month.

“This will we hope assist in covering the costs of damage faced by farmers and others,” he underlined.

Meanwhile, Persaud stressed that climate change will be exacerbated by other stresses arising from poverty, food insecurity, incidence of diseases among other.

He cautioned: “We must also remember that the ability of the country to adapt to climate change is intimately connected to social and economic development and the effects of climate change are unevenly distributed across and within societies,” Guyana’s position

NCC Chairman Mr. Shyam Nokta said that the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change

(IPCC) has projected an 11 to 17 inches rise in sea levels by the end of the 21st century and in Guyana’s case it could be higher.

He disclosed that there will be more intense periods of rainfall and longer dry periods with an overall drop in annual average rainfall.

Mr. Nokta pointed out that Guyana is very vulnerable to this situation because 90 percent of its population reside on the coastal zone which is 0.8 to 1.2 metres below sea level.

However, he said government has embarked on strengthening its sea and river defences — both mangrove protection and infrastructure, drainage and irrigation, planning and response measures and has upgraded the settlement and land use policy to address the problem.

The NCC Chairman also called for a collaborative approach to address the phenomenon because all sectors will be affected and pledged to continue raising awareness through public discussions and the mass media.

During the symposium head of the Sea Defence Department Mrs. Agnes Dalrymple delivered an overview of the sea defenses while acting Chief Executive Officer of the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) Mr. Lionel Wordsworth did a similar presentation on the drainage and irrigation system.

Guyana Lands and Survey Commission, Surveys Division Manager Mr. Rene Duesbury also spoke on flood mapping in the vulnerable regions of the coast.