Belize Water Services has selected four consultants to submit proposals for the expansion of the water and sewerage facilities at Ambergris Caye, the largest island in Belize and a popular tourist destination.

The consultants invited to submit proposals are:

• Geniver of Trinidad
• Fichtner Water & Transportation GmbH of Germany
• Roughton International, Ltd of Hampshire, UK
• Stantec Consulting International Ltd of Canada

A feasibility study completed in May 2011 provided preliminary designs and made recommendations for a capital investment program that could be phased in over the next 18 years. However, some aspects of the study did not consider the latest available information and site-specific conditions, and must be updated to incorporate the missing data.

The planned project involves the construction of a new 2,080 m³/d (0.55 MGD) RO potable water treatment plant and distribution system; a new gravity sewer collection system and twelve sewage pumping stations; a new 5,950 m³/d (1.6 MGD) sewage treatment lagoon system; and a UV disinfection system and onsite power generation at the new and existing lagoon systems.

Proposals are due this Thursday, 25 October. Contract negotiations are expected to begin on 20 November with an award by 15 December, and the contract will last an estimated ten months.

Source

Okay so this contract is being let to address design issues associated with information missing in the previous feasibility study. Does anyone know what "latest available information and site-specific conditions" are that require such redesign? Does anyone know how or who you'd contact to get more information?

Also does anyone know if the "new" sewage treatement lagoons would be built in adddition to the existing ponds or will they be an overhaul/expansion of the existing to make them larger? It occurs to me that new ponds would require aquisition and developemnt of a fairly large tract of land. Is the plane to use existing "dry" land or are they going to need to make new land out of mangrove wetlands.