Warning that “Jamaica’s drought is becoming an economic risk”, Nigel Davy, chair of the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica’s (PSOJ’s) Energy, Environment and Climate Change Committee, has called on business interests to view water conservation as “both a business necessity and a public interest obligation”.

“Water scarcity is no longer only an environmental or household concern [but] is becoming a business, productivity and national resilience issue,” he said in a recent message on the PSOJ’s social media platform.

His comments come even as Jamaica grapples with prolonged drought driven by the El Niño weather pattern which has suppressed local rainfall and caused temperatures to soar. Jamaica’s Met Service has warned that the country could continue experiencing drought conditions into the peak of what is traditionally the main rainy season in October which could strain water supplies, disrupt agricultural production, and increase heat stress on crops and livestock. The crisis — intensified by long-term damage from Hurricane Melissa in October last year — has severely depleted water supplies, decimated agricultural production, increased business’ operating costs, and triggered strict prohibition orders across multiple parishes. Minister of Water, Environment and Climate Change Matthew Samuda has warned that restrictions are likely to move further west as dry conditions persist and dam levels decline.

Davy has called on “every business” to follow a “simple water hierarchy” centred on conservation, improving efficiency, expanding supply, only seeking additional resources after conservation and efficiency measures have been maximised. He said entities should “avoid unnecessary use, reduce the amount of water required to operate, reuse, capture and reuse water wherever practical”.

He cautioned that, as businesses strengthen their own resilience, they must ensure that their “actions do not restrict nearby communities from accessing this shared national resource”.

The PSOJ committee chair cautioned that the country “cannot keep treating drought as a temporary emergency”.

“The current conditions are exposing long-standing weaknesses in our water infrastructure, particularly across the Corporate Area and vulnerable farming communities,” Davy pointed out.

He noted that while important water-supply investments have been made in communities across St Elizabeth, St Catherine and elsewhere, “the larger structural challenge remains”.

Davy stressed that, given the impact of climate change, Jamaica must move beyond water trucking as a response to drought.

“When drought becomes prolonged and recurrent, emergency responses are no longer enough. Jamaica needs a water system designed for the climate realities we now face. Water is an economic input; it keeps farms producing, factories operating, hotels functioning, restaurants serving, construction sites moving, communities working. When supply becomes unreliable, businesses must spend more on tanks, trucking, storage and alternative sources. For SMEs (small and medium enterprises) in particular, those additional costs can be difficult to absorb. Water scarcity quickly becomes a cost of doing business,” he stated.

He spoke of the importance of the country developing a “reliable and diversified national water system built around modernised water infrastructure, stronger watershed protection, more efficient water allocation, agricultural adaptation, clear drought contingency planning, new pipelines and water — transfer infrastructure, greater use of available river resources, desalination where viable supported by lower-cost renewable energy and battery storage”.

“Water security must become part of Jamaica’s long-term economic strategy,” the PSOJ’s Energy, Environment and Climate Change committee chair asserted.

The Government last month announced a $350-million drought mitigation fund aimed at alleviating the growing water crisis across the country. Of that amount, $150 million has been allocated for water trucking which will be distributed through Members of Parliament. An additional $50 million has been allotted to assist with further trucking support to the National Water Commission to service critical infrastructure while $50 million will go towards the purchase of additional water tanks. Farmers will also benefit from relief through a $100-million tranche which will be managed under the Ministry of Agriculture, Mining and Fisheries.