Children's Safe Water Project, with Project Las Americas

Many of us take the water in our faucets for granted. It’s always there, and best of all, you can generally drink it without any unpleasant surprises! It is hard to imagine that so many live without easy access to running and/or potable water.

A typical spigot found at each residence in Guaranal

Six years ago, a Peace Corps Volunteer headed the design and construction of a 13 kilometer aqueduct (that’s 13 km from the source to the town’s holding tank, then another network of tubing from there to each house) in the small mountain town where I now preside, providing them with running water after years of hauling buckets to and from the river. Now, water for washing dishes, cleaning, laundry and bathing was as easy as walking outside and turning on a spigot (Houses are not allowed running water in the kitchen because it is more likely to be used wastefully). And while some drank the water, many more continued buying botellones – 5-gallon bottles of purified drinking water – these botellones sell for 40-45 pesos, or about $1. This translates to roughly 1/5 of a day’s wage in the campo. If you have a family, this amount of water doesn’t last long, and unfortunately, can be seen as a luxury instead of a necessity.

Now, six years later, through coordination with the community, Peace Corps, Project las Americas, Wishing Well International and Safe Water Team, the rural campo of Guaranal just installed 57 Biosand Water Filters (BSF), which will help provide clean, potable water for years to come.  The following pictures depict a few installations, one with the técnico (expert?) I trained, the other with Bob Hildreth of the ONG Project Las Americas, who came with a group of students to teach them about the filter (and help me out with some expert installations).

My trained técnico beginning an installation.  

Mr. Hildreth pouring the final layer of fine sand into the filter.

If you're interested in learning more about the BSF and how it works, you can visit: 

http://www.cawst.org/en/resources/biosand-filter

or just google Biosand Water Filter.

How it all started

I was approached by a community member last spring about the possibility of a water filter project. This family recognized the high expense of botellones and the importance of a long-term source of potable water. I began broaching the subject with other community members and found an overwhelming interest in the project.

I spoke with the Peace Corps Water Sector and was put in touch with Robert Hildreth of a local NGO, Project Las Americas. After coordinating with him, I attended a training on the implementation of a BSF project. This included learning the science behind the filter, water-borne illnesses, how to install and maintain the BSF and how to plan and execute the project in a community.

Upon my return, I hiked to the water source (pero eso ‘ta lejo!) with a cooler full of ice to take water samples which were then sent for an analysis. I met various times with the community and we determined 57 BSF would be sufficient. Each beneficiary had to attend at least one meeting and pay a small amount, which covered the cost of BSF’s transportation and some extras. In these meetings we discussed the importance of water quality, water-borne illnesses, BSF usage and maintenance, and the results of the water analysis, which had small traces of fecal matter and a common type of harmful parasite.

I passed my training on to the community’s aqueduct technician, who will service the BSF long after I’m gone, and together we installed the 57 BSF.

My friend, técnico, neighbor and right-hand man for just about any project, Bertico.

The 55 beneficiary families and 2 schools are extremely satisfied with the BSF for its ease of use, the savings from botellones, and of course the quality of water they provide. In total, 225 people have been directly benefitted.

A satisfied family

At least the schools are teaching kids to pose well for pictures!

The community of Guaranal and I would like to extend our sincerest thanks to Project Las Americas, Wishing Well International, Safe Water Team and Hospital Buen Samaritano for the successful implementation of the project!

Check out Project Las Americas at http://www.projectlasamericas.com/