Saba Commissioner Bruce Zagers and Dutch State Secretary Raymond Knops unveil the sign for the construction of the water bottling plant on Monday, with the assistance of Island Governor Jonathan Johnson.
SABA--The Dutch government, via the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, will donate of a truck to Saba to transport the three- and five-gallon refillable water bottles from the under-construction water bottling plant, to and from businesses and homes.
Dutch State Secretary for Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations Raymond Knops announced the donation at the unveiling of the sign board at the water bottling plant site in St. John’s. Island Governor Jonathan Johnson and Commissioner Bruce Zagers assisted with the unveiling.
The preparatory work for the construction of the fully-automated plant has started. It should be open by April, said Zagers.
The water bottling plant will help Saba to be more self-reliant and less dependent on the importation of bottled water, which is especially useful if a situation like after hurricanes Irma and Maria were to occur again.
With installation of the two filling stations in The Bottom and Windwardside, and the laying of the water pipe on a large part of the island, the price of water has already decreased on average by 50 per cent.
Another advantage of this new drinking water is quality. The drinking water produced in the bottling plant complies with the quality standards of the BES Drinking Water Act, which includes the essential minerals required for healthy drinking water.
The project management for the plant is carried out by Saba. The funding is provided by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management.
Knops commended Saba for working proactively, becoming more self-reliant and more sustainable. He said that projects such as the solar park, waste management and recycling, the airport, harbour, hospital and the water bottling plant were all big improvements for Saba and its people.
“I often use Saba as an example in the Dutch Parliament. You make a good plan, you stick with it and you execute it,” said Knops.
Dutch Minister of Infrastructure and Water Management Cora van Nieuwenhuizen was unable to visit for the event due to an incident on the Wadden Islands involving multiple containers that fell overboard from a ship. The containers contents have been washing on the shores of the Wadden Islands, causing major pollution.
