Nassau, The Bahamas: The Water and Sewerage Corporation (WSC) has saved Bahamians millions of dollars through the enhancement of the Windsor Wellfield, according to Deputy General Manager Cyprian Gibson.
The project commenced in 2023, and targeted upgrades have significantly boosted production. At the time, the wellfield was producing 215 million gallons. In 2024, that increased from 315 million gallons rising again to 367 million gallons in 2025.
Officials say with ongoing improvements, production is expected to surpass 435 million gallons this year.
“This represents savings of over $2 million per year,” Mr. Gibson said. “Over the three-year period, we have saved about $5 million in water purchases of the more expensive, more energy intensive reverse osmosis water.”
The Windsor Wellfield located near the Lynden Pindling International Airport (LPIA) is the original source of water supply for New Providence. It is a natural water resource that supplements 20 percent of the capital’s water supply. The rest of the water supply generally comes from reverse osmosis plants located throughout the island.
The Corporation is now increasing capacity at Windsor, and this process allows WSC to reduce its dependence on higher cost desalinated water, lowering operational expenses while improving energy efficiency.
“This provides some relief while upgrades are being done to the reverse osmosis plants. The wellfield has been naturally recharging by rainwater and now we can extract a large amount of water in safe and sustainable quantities and blend it with reverse osmosis,” Mr. Gibson said.
“We have a number of wellfields that are recovering. What we are doing likewise is revamping these up. We have to adapt the wellfields to meet the new climate change norms, and we want to make sure that we are doing that in a scientific and sustainable way; so that we optimize that incremental production from the wellfields but not over abstract so that it is protected for future
generations.” Mr. Gibson also encouraged Bahamians to connect to the public water supply because it is safer.
“From our standpoint, we abstract and purchase water from protected areas and we have an obligation to produce that water to World Health Organization (WHO) standards,” he said.
“We are also monitored by the Ministry of Health and Wellness. When it comes to individual wells, you may not be as consistent with putting in chlorine tablets. There may be cross contamination from flooding and alike. There is a certain level of professional monitoring that an individual may not be doing. When you are on public water supply that comes with that world-class monitoring.”
