Water, sanitation focus of LNG help

National, Normal
Source:

The National- Tuesday, January 18, 2011

 By ELIZABETH MIAE

ADEQUATE water supply and proper sanitation are at the top of the list for Papa, the most impacted Central village in the liquefied natural gas (LNG) project site. 

Since the multi-billion kina project is in its first phase with many overseas companies and investors waiting to strike a deal with either the service providers or the landowner companies to improve water and sanitation in the impacted village. 

One such company is Bio Systems PNG that has expressed interested to provide the service of building a sanitation plant and bore water system in the impacted area. 

The management was able to meet with landowner company Papa Resources Development Ltd (PRDL) last week on a field trip to Papa village.

Representatives from Bio Systems went to Papa to assess and see the opportunity of setting a sanitation plant and building a bore water system.  

The company has operated for 15 years in most parts of Asia, Timor Leste, Dubai and other Pacific island countries. 

Managing director Mark Campbell told PRDL directors that the company would provide technical training to the locals to maintain the plant once it is built after five years of operation.

PRDL chairman Heni Goro said he was keen to engage Bio Systems to construct sanitation plant bore water system to minimise health issues in the impacted area, especially Papa.  

“These projects are some of the visions PRDL is trying its best to bring services to people of the impacted area,” he said.

The four villages of the project zone all face severe problems with safe water supply. 

The survey conducted during the scope of the proposed site showed that villages were using bore wells. 

This practice of fetching water is mainly done by women who wake up as early as four in the morning to avoid carrying their households’ water typically two 20L containers during the heat of the day. 

The bores are fed by underground springs and dry up between May and November, when water must be carted from Port Moresby. 

There is one well 2.5km north of the village and only accessible by foot. 

Women take four trips a day averaging 10 to 20km on foot each. In the dry season, water is trucked from Port Moresby at a cost of K3 per 20L container. 

The sanitation and bore water system will minimise other disease like skin rashes on children and, most recently, cholera.