Climate change, pollution, and growing demand are putting increasing pressure on Saint Lucia’s water resources. And experts from the Department of Sustainable Development and the Water Resources Management Agency (WRMA) are calling for urgent action to safeguard the island’s water supply.
Officials highlighted the need for better conservation, improved infrastructure, and greater public awareness at a workshop on climate change and water security on Thursday morning.
Junior Mathurin, a field scientist at the WRMA, reinforced the urgency of conservation efforts, particularly as Saint Lucia enters its dry season. He explained that while the country has been fortunate to receive some unexpected rainfall, this is not a reliable long-term trend, and proper planning is necessary.
Mathurin urged Saint Lucians to adopt better conservation habits, as he noted that some consumers believe that because they are paying for water, they can use it freely.
He advised households to fix leaks immediately, install rainwater harvesting systems, and turn off taps when not in use. Businesses, he suggested, should implement water recycling systems and install low-flow faucets and toilets, while farmers should use efficient irrigation methods and protect riverbanks to prevent erosion.
Mathurin also addressed concerns about over-abstraction, where large companies extract water at rates faster than natural replenishment. While small farmers are exempt from paying fees for water use, larger corporations must contribute to abstraction licence fees. This process ensures that water resources are managed sustainably with government oversight.
Beyond regulation, Mathurin pointed to the WRMA’s role in educating the public.
“One of the tasks of the agency is to go out there and to continue doing awareness,” he said, explaining that WRMA visits schools and communities to teach people how to conserve water and manage it responsibly.
He warned that pollution and poor waste management directly impact the quality of drinking water. Illegal dumping, particularly in rivers, leads to contamination and increases the burden on the Water and Sewerage Company (WASCO), the national water supplier. Mathurin therefore encouraged citizens to utilise proper waste disposal services instead of treating rivers as dumping grounds.
While the government is working on long-term solutions, including upgrading aging pipelines and expanding water storage capacity, he stressed that individual responsibility is just as important.
“We cannot do it by ourselves,” he said. “Let us practise conservation and sustainable methods so we can have a better water supply.”
In a documentary aired during the event, Chief Sustainable Development and Environment Officer, Dawn Pierre-Nathoniel stressed the importance of the National Adaptation Plan (NAP) – a 10-year strategy (2018-2028) designed to help Saint Lucia cope with the adverse effects of climate change.
The NAP highlights eight priority sectors for adaptation action, listing water, agriculture, fisheries, resilient ecosystems, infrastructure and spatial planning, health, education, and tourism as key areas for resilience-building.
Pierre-Nathoniel stressed that the NAP provides a clear roadmap for both short-term and long-term solutions, ensuring that Saint Lucia strengthens its ability to withstand environmental changes. “The NAP allows the country to see what it can do to help build its climate resilience, what it can do to help it better prepare or cope with climate change,” she explained.
She pointed to ongoing projects aimed at climate resilience, including coral restoration initiatives and infrastructure improvements to combat rising temperatures and more frequent extreme weather events.
Pierre-Nathoniel urged communities and businesses to get involved in sustainable practices, stating that there are very tangible actions that can be taken to help address climate change.
