Beautiful Virgin Islands


Gov’t seeking to lay pipes above ground

Gov’t seeking to lay pipes above ground

Government officials have been exploring the prospect of laying water and sewerage pipes above ground as they seek to arrive at a workable approach to addressing leakages that have been plaguing the territory for years.
Works Minister Kye Rymer gave that indication at a recent press conference while discussing some of the major challenges within his portfolio; including roads that were left dug up and unattended for some time.

“What we are also working on, too, is to see what can be done in terms of laying the pipes above the road. That is something that we are investigating because we know we have an age-old system, and we want to get some pipes where they can probably stand above ground so that, you know, in case of any leaks, it would be easier to repair,” Rymer said.

The minister said once roads are comprehensively paved, then there would no longer be an issue of having the roads dug up.

Minister Rymer also admitted that no government department is currently fully financed, suggesting that this may be one of the major hindrances in accomplishing some of the Public Works Department’s goals. The minister disclosed that only $12 million of a $55 million allocation from the territory’s annual budget was put towards development projects within his ministry.

He indicated that these funds have been put towards restoration works on the Ralph T. O’Neal Administration Complex and the national sewerage project, among other things.

“Within that budget, there’s not that much to get done and it brings some frustrations to the workers because they themselves want to go out there and make sure that the work is done,” Rymer said.
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