Project Document No. 5 - People and the Sea A study of coastal livelihoods in Laborie, Saint Lucia

7/28/2019 Project Document No. 5 - People and the Sea A study of coastal livelihoods in Laborie, Saint Lucia

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A survey of perceptions of water quality and baseline data on thelevel and distribution of bacterial contamination in

Laborie Bay, St. Lucia

G. Hutchinson

January 2002

People and the SeaA Study of Coastal Livelihoods in Laborie, St. Lucia Project Document No. 5


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This report is a product of a research project aimed at testing and developing tools, methods and

approaches critical to the sustainable development of coastal communities in the Caribbean and

other parts of the world. The project, calledPeople and the Sea: a Study of Coastal Livelihoodsin Laborie, St. Lucia, is implemented by the Caribbean Natural Resources Institute (CANARI) in

collaboration with the Laborie Development Planning Committee (LDPC), the Department of

Fisheries in the Government of St. Lucia, and a number of governmental and communityorganisations. People and the Sea is funded by the United Kingdom Department for International

Development (DFID) under its Natural Resources Systems Programme, and receives technical

assistance from the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Sussex in the UK.

The primary focus of this initiative is on testing and developing specific tools and methods inparticipatory planning, institutional design and sustainable use.People and the Sea therefore

tests, develops, refines and documents methods that aim at increasing effective participation of

stakeholders in all stages of planning and management. It also explores and documentstechnologies and management tools which can enhance the social and economic benefits derived

from the sustainable use of coastal resources, and particularly from the reef fishery, sea urchin

harvesting, seaweed cultivation and heritage tourism. At the same time, the project will help toevaluate the impact of participation on the sustainability of resource use and on the livelihoods of

people, by identifying and monitoring concrete linkages between institutional and technologicalchange on the one hand, and the well-being of both the people and the reefs on the other. At the

end of the project, results will be analysed, documented and disseminated for the benefit ofresource managers and policy makers within and outside the Caribbean region.

This publication is an output from a project funded by the UK Department for InternationalDevelopment (DFID) for the benefit of developing countries. The views expressed are not

necessarily those of DFID.

For more information onPeople and the Sea, contact:

Caribbean Natural Resources Institute (CANARI), New Dock Road, Box 383, Vieux Fort, St.Lucia, tel: 758.454.6060, fax: 758. 454.5188. E-mail: [email protected], or

Laborie Development Planning Committee, c/o Laborie Boys Primary School, Citrus Grove,

Laborie, St. Lucia. E-mail: [email protected].

This document should be cited as Hutchinson, G. 2001. A survey of perceptions of water quality,and baseline data on the level and distribution of bacterial contamination, in Laborie Bay, St.

Lucia. CANARI LWI Project Document no. 5. CANARI Technical Report no. 301:10 pp.


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A survey of perceptions of water quality, and baseline data on the level and distribution of

bacterial contamination, in Laborie Bay, St. Lucia.

Gem Hutchinson1

1Queen Mary and Westfield College, University of London

Background

Water quality in Laborie Bay has been of some concern to the community for quite a while. This

has especially been a concern to the fishermen because if water quality is poor it may affect thereefs that are a resource to them, as well as to many of the people living in the village, whether

directly or indirectly.

A survey in the form of a questionnaire was carried out as a baseline study to get the peoplesviews on the issues surrounding water quality. The aim was to find out whether they believed the

water to be polluted and if so whether it was dangerous, to find out the sources of any existing

pollution, and to identify what could be done and who should take up the responsibility of

dealing with any possible pollution problems.

No data were available on actual levels of any type of pollution in the Bay. A baseline study was

therefore conducted focusing on levels of bacterial contamination at a number of stations in theLaborie Bay and adjacent bays. The aim of the tests was to find out whether the water was

actually polluted and what were the possible causes or sources of this pollution.

The survey of perceptions

Allan Smith, Yves Renard and Gem Hutchinson prepared the questionnaire for the survey. Onehundred and two questionnaires were completed with residents in the area surrounding the Bay

during the 13th and 14th of August 2001. The survey was carried out in an informal setting.

Of the 102 people who were interviewed, 37 were female and 65 were male. The age distributionis shown below.

Age category Number ofrespondents

Child 3

Adolescent 21

Adult 60

Senior citizen 18


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Question 1. How clean is the water in Laborie Bay?

Not quite clean 50%

Not clean at all 30%

Very clean 20%

Question 2. If it is not clean, how long has it been like this?

0 9 years 16%10 19 years 26%

20 29 years 31%

> 30 years 1%

Question 3. If it is not clean, do you think it is dangerous to people?

Yes 47%

No 30%

Maybe 23%

Question 4. Where do you think is most polluted?

Labatwi 46%Everywhere 7%

Market (fish market) to Labatwi 6%

Playing field to Labatwi 5%

Near the market (only) 2%

Anba Koko 1%

Question 5. What could be the main causes of this pollution?


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shore or thrown into the sea)

Water from septic tanks / sewers 5%

People living in area 4%Rough seas 2%

Silt 2%

Development 1%

Stagnant water 1%

Some kind of gel 1%

Building of highway 1%

Unclogging ravines by removing soilthrough digging

1%

Burying / disposing of dead animals on or

off shore

1%

Water from households (soapy water etc.) 1%

Fibreglass boats 1%

Chemicals getting into water (from farmsand other industries)

1%

Dont know much about the beach 1%

Question 6. What should be done about it?

Provide public facilities (24 hr services /

regular cleaning)

24%

Educate people (about hazards and effects

of polluted water)

15%

Clean the beach regularly 15%Proper garbage disposal 6%

Law enforcement (uplift those already inplace, place fines, put up signs)

6%

Provide bins near beach 6%

Monitor beach, some kind of security 6%

Fix & clean gutters / drains 6%

Nothing can be done about it 5%Dont know 3%

Dispose of fish remains properly 1%

Proper sewers 1%

Place all animal pens in one area where

waste can be dealt with properly

1%


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[6] Fresh Water Criteria, Ambient Water Quality Criteria for Bacteria-1986. EPA 440/5-84

002 January, 1986.

(Report of CEPOL, 1990)

Methods

Nine points were chosen along the shoreline as shown in Figure 1. Sources of fresh water runoff

are also shown. Two replicate water samples were taken at each point and were tested using an

OXFAM-DELAGUA portable water testing kit.

Sample analysis procedure for thermo-tolerant (faecal) coliforms: One absorbent culture pad was placed in each petri dish using the absorbent pad

dispenser Enough culture medium was poured to soak pad and leave a slight excess to prevent

drying of the pad during incubation

The tip of the tweezers was sterilized using an open flame The plastic cover of the sterile filtration apparatus was removed and a sterile membrane

filter (0.45m) was placed on the filtration base. The funnel and collar were replaced

immediately to avoid contamination A 10ml water sample was poured into the filter funnel using a mechanical pipette. To

ensure that all the water was filtered a vacuum pump was used. The membrane was removed from the filtration base and placed in a prepared petri dish.

The lid of the petri dish was replaced and labeled Petri dishes were placed in carrier and put into the incubator pot for incubation at 44 oC

for 14 16 hrs

Yellow colonies (only) that had formed on the membrane filter were counted and theresult multiplied by 10 to give a count per 100ml of seawater.

The sample cup and filtration apparatus had to be sterilized with formaldehyde gas between

samples to avoid cross contamination. This was done by pouring a few drops of methanol intothe sample cup and setting it alight. Methanol was allowed to burn for a few seconds and then

filtration apparatus was placed over the cup while it was still alight. The apparatus was kept that

way for 15 minutes before processing the next sample.

Salinity at each station determined using a refractometer.

Results

h d f h l h i A di 1 h d i h h li


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The tests were carried out from April to September 2001. This included a dry season and a wet

season, which allowed comparison between the two seasons. Results show that the bacteriallevels increased with the amount of rainfall. During the drier months of April and early June,

bacterial counts were low and in some cases nil. However from late June to August, levels rose

significantly implying a relationship between the bacterial counts and rainfall. This is to beexpected given the very high counts found in the water entering the bay via drains (see below).

There was also concern as to whether this problem of faecal contamination was solely ashoreline problem or whether it occurred throughout the bay. Sampling was carried out at

stations further out in the Bay (10 12, 13 15, Figure 1) and results indicate that bacteriallevels decline with increasing distance from shore.

Fresh Water Sources

The fresh water sources consist mainly of domestic wastewaters, with a number of drains

running through the village and eventually ending up in the sea.

Domestic wastewaters: Toilet flushing (black waters)

Showers, wash basins, kitchens and laundry (grey waters)

Institutions schools, works places, police station

Commercial sites restaurants, offices, laundromats, guesthoues

Cottage / small domestic industries car workshops etc.

Sewage

The two main types of toilets being used are flush toilets and pit latrines. Although flush toilets

are the most common, sewage only receives preliminary and primary treatment. The reason for

such limited treatment is due to the use of septic tanks.

Septic tanks have been an effective method for collecting, treating and disposing of waste for

quite a long time especially for rural and suburban homes. The Laborie community is developing

at a fast rate and becoming more populated. This means that the number of homes will increasewhich automatically increases the number of septic tanks.

The septic tank being used is the Two-Chamber Septic tank with Upflow Filter. In some areas,

the outlet may lead to a manhole where water collects and slowly goes through pipes surrounded

by gravel, which helps purify water before it gets into surface waters. The water from the


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Possible Effects of this Pollution

On reefs

The distribution of the bacterial levels shown in the test results corresponds to the reef status in

the bay. Those reefs closer to shore are covered in algae while those further out arecomparatively healthy, indicating the effects of nutrient pollution close to shore. The presence of

thermo-tolerant faecal coliform bacteria indicate faecal pollution in the same area. Faecal

pollution may be linked to high levels of nitrates present in the water which in turn leads toeutrophication resulting in the growth of algae on the reefs. If pollution should spread throughout

the bay, it is likely that all the reefs will be affected. This poses as a threat to the people who aredependent on the reefs as a means of survival whether directly or indirectly. It can also be a

problem for any future projects where the reefs could be used as a tourist attraction.

On health

Generally, pathogenic and non-pathogenic microbes can be found in recreational waters. Thesemicrobes could come from a number of sources such as sewage effluents, bathers and as a result

of various land uses (farming, industry, livestock) as well as those occurring naturally in thewater. Such a mixture could pose as a threat to a bathers health. Infection by pathogenic bacteria

could lead to disease. One of the common effects is enteric illness such as self-limiting gastro-enteritis. Eye, ear, nose and throat infections are also likely to be acquired through bathing in

polluted water. Although there has been no solid evidence for a relationship between skin disease

and exposure to pollutes water in the study area, when carrying out the questionnaire surveysome people claimed that they break out in rashes after using the sea.

Conclusion

Baseline water quality analysis confirms the popular perception that parts of Laborie Bay arebadly polluted. Bacterial contamination frequently exceeds acceptable levels for bathing waters.

The stations used in this baseline will be re-sampled periodically during 2002. At the same time

a public awareness campaign will be implemented focusing on water quality issues, and

disseminating the results of the analyses. A post-campaign survey of perceptions will beconducted. The results of the surveys and the ongoing monitoring will be analysed to study how

increased awareness of, and access to, information on the status, causes and potential impacts of

water pollution contributes to a change in behaviour, and to identify the processes by which thesechanges occur.


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Appendix 1

Salinity (as practical salinity units = parts per 1000) and abundance of thermo-tolerant coliform bacteria (as colony forming units per 100ml seawater) at stations

1 - 15 in Laborie Bay.

Stn 1 Stn 2 Stn 3 Stn 4 Stn 5 Stn 6 Stn 7 Stn 8 Stn 9

Date So/oo CFU So/oo CFU S

o/o

o

CFU So/oo CFU So/oo CFU S

o/oo CFU So/oo CFU S

o/oo CFU So/oo CFU

5 Apr 01 38 0 0 37 0 37 10 37 85 37 3280 0 37 155 37 0

17 Apr 01 0 0 36 95 36 175 36 315 5 0 0 0

1 Jun 01 38 0 37 0 37 0 38 0 38 0 37 0 37 0 0 0

22 Jun 01 35 0 35 0 35 315 35 5 35 50 35 0 36 0 35 0 36 5

27 Jun 01 34 930 35 725 35 3235 35 1270 35 360 35 620 35 1295 35 120 35 70

4 Jul 01 35 0 35 95 35 1240 35 1215 35 165 35 35 36 30 36 10 36 5

11 Jul 01 35 55 33 40 35 1290 34 1915 36 195 36 150 36 590 35 25 36 10

18 Jul 01 34 170 34 145 33 860 34 420 34 55 34 0 34 5 34 15 35 10

25 Jul 01 34 40 34 35 35 6105 35 3330 35 775 35 335 35 240 36 120 36 20

Stn 10 Stn 11 Stn 12 Stn 13 Stn 14 Stn 15

Date So/oo CFU So/oo CFU S

o/oo CFU So/oo CFU S

o/oo CFU So/oo CFU

31 Aug 01 34 990 34 15 34 5 35 25 35 25 35 0

7 Sep 01 34 5 34 785 34 795 35 4 35 0 35 0

Documents

Project Document No. 5 - People and the Sea A study of coastal livelihoods in Laborie, Saint Lucia