T&T government insists that farmers get licences to use river water

Farmers in Trinidad and Tobago are standing firm on their refusal to pay for the use of river water for their crops.

The state Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA) is demanding that farmers pay for the water.

On Tuesday a delegation from the National Foodcrop Farmers Association lead by its president, Norris Deonarine, met WASA officials to discuss the matter.

"We presented our views on the issue but they still maintain that they want us to pay for the water which is downstream." Deonarine told the Trinidad Express.

On Monday, WASA announced that it would license and regulate the use of water from 18 rivers, thereby prohibiting farmers from using water from the rivers in east and north Trinidad.

WASA told the farmers they would have to make an application for use of water.

Deonarine said he can understand the logic of paying for water headed to WASA dams.

However he said that is not the case at present. He explained that the water coming under WASA's jurisdiction by this new order is downstream of WASA treatment plants, and farmers have always used this water to irrigate crops.

The farmers want to meet WASA'ss top executives to discuss the issue of water security.

Agriculture Minister Arnold Piggott issued a statement on the matter urging farmers to apply for water licences through the Ministry.

"We are urging the nation’s farmers to apply for these licences through the Ministry’s county offices. The Ministry will then obtain the licence from the Water Resources Agency on your behalf," Piggott said.

He promised that the Ministry "will continue to collaborate with all stakeholders in the agriculture sector to ensure that we deal with the current challenges for water efficiently and effectively."

He added, "We will also continue to seek wider dialogue and recommendations to ensure that the nation’s farmers, and the people of T&T as a whole, have the resources they need to grow what they eat and eat what they grow."