White Plains, Montserrado County – President George Weah over the weekend broke grounds for the construction of a raw water intake pipeline at White Plains.
The 48-inch diameter pipeline, according to officials, will replace the original 36-inch diameter pipeline that was destroyed during Liberia’s civil war.
It is part of the energy project under the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Compact with Liberia.
The MCC is a Liberia-United States partnership to reduce poverty and promote economic growth. //
it has been a little over 60 years, in 1956 when the first pipeline was constructed and was destroyed during the war. //
the ground breaking ceremony was a significant milestone for the LWSC in supplying water to the locals. //
The new pipeline, Mr. Captan added, is approximately 5 kilometers long and generally follows the original alignment of the pipeline with small deviations.
According to him, it will improve water quality to the municipal water system.
The current location of the intake pipe on the St. Paul River results in poor water quality and salty water during the dry season when the water level is low.
For his part, LWSC’s Managing Director, Duannah Kamara revealed the pipeline project will deliver water from the dam using gravity flow, saving LWSC US$780,000 a year in electricity costs to pump water to the water treatment plant.
In addition, he said the US$18 million pipeline will improve the reliability and quality of the water supply to nearly one million residents of Greater Monrovia.
Meanwhile, MCA-L has contracted Denys NV of Belgium to design and construct the pipeline, while Nicholas O’Dwyer of Ireland will be responsible for design review and construction supervision.
The pipeline, which is the last project under the current compact is expected to be completed in June 2020.
