CORAL SPRING, Trelawny — Minister of Water, Environment and Climate Change Matthew Samuda says sewage management remains one of the country’s most pressing sustainability challenges.

“The cost for us to deal with sewage is a massive undertaking on the capital project side [but] because… it’s not sexy nobody gets kudos for opening a new sewerage plant. When you cut that ribbon, that’s not what makes it to the front page of the paper but it’s one of the most important investments you can make,” Samuda said.

He was addressing the Rotaract 7020 Conference at Ocean Coral Spring Resort in Trelawny last Friday.

“It’s much like dealing with your prison system; nobody gets kudos for investing money in your prison system until it has a problem [then] somebody says, ‘Well, why didn’t you do it?’ “ he added.

Samuda acknowledged that carving out adequate funding for sewerage projects from the national budget can be difficult but stressed that such investments are critical if Jamaica is to achieve long-term sustainability.

“The truth is, we have a long, long way to go,” he said.

Despite the challenges, the minister pointed to the planned divestment and upgrade of the Soapberry Sewage Treatment Plant as a significant step forward. The project is expected to double the facility’s capacity and upgrade operations from secondary to tertiary treatment, improving the country’s wastewater management capabilities.

“It doesn’t deal with the issues we have in all of our townships around the coast, but it is a major, major investment. We expect to go to market later this year for a party that will divest some of our interest in the plant,” he explained.

Samuda also raised concerns about air quality, citing emissions from poorly maintained motor vehicles as a growing source of pollution. He said the Government is pursuing legislative and regulatory changes to facilitate tailpipe emissions testing, which would help identify and remove heavily polluting vehicles from Jamaica’s roads.

Turning to wastewater disposal practices, the minister reiterated concerns about the continued use of backyard septic pits, particularly in coastal communities where the water table is naturally high. He warned that disposing of sewage and wastewater in backyard pits increases nitrate contamination of groundwater, threatening future water supplies and limiting opportunities for development.

“One of the greatest environmental risks we face is indeed the backyard pit,” Samuda said, noting that towns such as Falmouth, Port Maria and Ocho Rios are especially vulnerable because of their high water tables.

“Putting wastewater and sewage into a backyard pit significantly increases the nitrate leakage into your water, which makes it unharvestable or unusable,” he warned.

Samuda argued that inadequate sewerage infrastructure not only poses environmental risks but also creates economic barriers, as modern water and sewerage networks are essential to supporting growth and attracting development.

“You don’t have sewerage infrastructure [and] you’re also risking your future water supply, so I worry deeply about sewage,” he said.