Pomona Water System expanded to Rodsville

By William Ysaguirre (Freelance Writer)

BELIZE CITY, Mon. July 6, 2026

   The 375 new landowners who will become residents of the housing development of Rodsville, an extension of Pomona Village, are already assured of a reliable, potable water supply and the energy to power the system, through a $160,000 expansion of the Pomona Village water system, which the Ministry of Rural Transformation, Community Development, and Local Government inaugurated last Saturday, July 4.

   “What you are seeing today is an investment of over $160,000; that’s what our ministry is investing in Rodsville, Minister of Rural Transformation Hon. Oscar Requeña informed the new homeowners, “to support you, the residents of Pomona and the other residents who are coming to live here.”

   “The investment includes all the pipes, a back-up generator, the solar system, and we also have a booster pump … whether you have electricity or not, water is going to be running,” Minister Requeña assured the new Rodsville residents. “Most importantly, we are using renewable energy. That means that your energy consumption should be lower. It means that you are going to pay a lower bill, and it allows the water board to generate more money to support this community.”

   The new expansion of the system addresses Pomona’s historical water supply constraints, where demand often exceeds supply during the dry season, and the National Meteorological Service has forecasted possible drought this year from the El Niño effect. The new system is solar-powered by solar energy and includes a 40,000-liter ground-level reservoir, a new pump house, and a backup diesel generator for cloudy days. This advanced setup with an independent water source is designed to relieve the pressure on the existing system, so that homeowners will have water even in times of drought.

   The Ministry of Rural Transformation also presented the community with a significant consignment of pipes, fittings, and other plumbing materials, to equip the village water board to actively manage the system and deliver dependable service to new areas as the community grows.

   “I am hopeful that the Pomona Water Board will manage it properly and sustainably to make sure that we always have reliable water in the village of Pomona,” declared the Stann Creek West area representative – Minister of Agriculture Hon. Rodwell Ferguson. “I will do everything in my power to make sure that we get that electricity, as we start to build,” he pledged. He said he expected the new areas to be a nice place for the new homeowners to raise their children.

   Minister Ferguson also distributed land titles for house lots in the new village of Rodsville, a new housing expansion which includes 375 lots, most of which have already been distributed. He explained that the land was originally a part of the Grant Works Reserve, which they petitioned the Ministry of Natural Resources to de-reserve. This was approved, and a portion of the de-reserved land was allocated to Pomona Village for expansion. The residents renamed the new housing area – the Rodsville community.

   Minister of State in the Ministry of Economic Transformation Hon. Osmond Martinez PhD and Chief Executive Officer Valentino Shal also lent their moral support at the inauguration ceremony, along with the village council and water board members.