In his address at the official commissioning ceremony in the Melajo Valencia Quarry, Readymix (West Indies) Chairman Ernest Williams said the Board of Directors felt that, as leaders in the cement manufacturing industry, the company’s position should be matched by a similar concern for the environment, even if it meant having to pay for it. The Water Clarifier System will totally eliminate the flow of effluent from our washing plant into the surrounding rivers.

He added that the TCL Group is pursuing another major initiative for improving the quality of the environment by incinerating waste in cement kilns for complete combustion under controlled conditions – as is done in parts of North America, Europe and Australia.

Speaking on behalf of the Minister of the Minister of the Environment, WASA CEO, Errol Grimes was high in praise of Readymix for commissioning the closed loop Water Clarifier System to recycle wash water.

He said the system will be a great saving for WASA because, now that the river was no longer polluted with heavy loads of silt from the quarry wash plant, farmers downstream could use river water to irrigate their crops instead of depending on WASA for water.

He stated that costs of treating water would be significantly reduced should quarries upstream of the Piarco water treatment plant install similar water clarifiers to reduce the loads of quarry- washing silt in the Caroni.

Charran Mootilal, speaking on behalf of the Minister of Energy, said the commissioning of the Water Clarifier was the most significant event in the quarry industry in the last 20 years.

He pointed out that silt laden wash water returned to the rivers, were the direct cause of flooding in Sangre Grande.

Applause greeted his statement that if the clarifier system is successful, the Ministry will insist that quarries must have a water clarifier before being granted a Certificate of Environmental Clearance. The official commissioning ceremony concluded with a tour of the Water Clarifier, and refreshments.