A G$460M contingency allocation to undertake permanent rip rap works and to secure other vulnerable sections within the 3 kilometres stretch of the Bellamy Canal in the Mahaicony area has been approved by the Ministry of Finance. This is according to Chief Sea and River Defence Officer, Mr Kevin Samad.
With this approval, Samad said the Infrastructure Ministry is in a better position to reassures residents and farmers of the Mahaicony area that continuous efforts are being made to monitor the sea defences and interventions are being arranged to expeditiously reinforce vulnerable sections to prevent flooding.
As part of these efforts, he said, emergency works are ongoing and to date over 7,500 tons of boulders have already been delivered within the Prospect/Dantzig area via barges by A & S General Contractors Inc. The Ministry has also revealed that a 90-foot long heavy-duty timber bridge was recently completed at Dantzig across the Bellamy Canal since the only other access bridge across the Bellamy Canal is approximately 3 kilometres away at Fairfield.
Meanwhile, to construct 325 metres of permanent rock revetment structure at the Prospect, Mahaicony, a contract valued at G$160M was awarded to A&S General Contractors Inc. This move, according to information out of the Ministry, is to supplement previous emergency intervention that was implemented along the Prospect area earlier this year during the months of March and April 2019.
The contractor has commenced supplying rock materials to execute the revetment works with over 3,000 tonnes of rock armour already delivered to site at Prospect. Additionally, on Tuesday, July 9, 2019, a tender was opened at the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board to construct an additional 350 metres of rip rap structure between Prospect and Broomhall under phase 2 of the project.
Samad explained that due to the erosion and accretion cycle characteristic of the Guyana coast, progressive movement of mud and silt from the Mahaicony foreshore has resulted in the rapid depletion of the mangrove fringe which has left the earthen embankment in several sections completely exposed to direct wave action.
Although the area was for many years protected by a natural flood protection system, it has now become necessary for a resilient man-made sea defence to be constructed.
The rainy season is also reportedly continuing to have adverse impacts on the progress of works since the access dams are currently in a deplorable state.
The shortest access dam is over 2 kilometres long and manoeuvring with lorries and earth moving equipment are restricted due to the continued inclement weather.