BASSETERRE, St. Kitts — Homebuilders in St. Kitts and Nevis are strongly encouraged by Director of the Public Works Department Cromwell Williams to include a cistern or water storage tanks in their building designs to promote sustainability and address water shortages.

A cistern is a large tank or a container that is used for water storage.

The twin-island Federation and other Caribbean countries have experienced reduced rainfall over the past five years, which experts suggest is a consequence of climate change.

“You should consider it when you are building,” said Williams. “There can be no argument against that. I strongly recommend persons to give that some serious consideration – including a cistern when you are building your house.”

Williams extended the recommendation to persons that already own a house of their own. Having a backup water supply “is definitely the way to go.”

To reinforce the usefulness of a cistern, Williams referred to the implementation of a climate change adaptation project in September 2020. The project involved the installation of water storage tanks and retrofitting others in 17 educational institutions across the Federation.

Several health institutions, including the Mary Charles Hospital in Molineux, also have water storage tanks.

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