Isabel Alvarez Murillo
Environmental Engineer, PROCAPCON
Program Director (Azul Pura), Water Ecuador
Q1. Can you briefly describe your work in Ecuador?
I have worked in two different projects in Ecuador. The first one involved training 5 members of the community on constructing wooden molds for biosand filters for a poor community in Zaruma. This community has piped water but it is not potable. The purpose of the biosand filter is remove bacterial contamination and sediments that might be present in the water. This type of technology can provide about 12 to 18 L of filtered drinking water in one hour and it required maintenance, which is very important since lack of could affect the proper functioning of the filter.
I also worked as the Director of Programs of an NGO called Water Ecuador, which had small water treatment systems in different towns in the coastal area of Ecuador where it can be very difficult to obtain potable water. The NGO provided safe drinking water to the community at an affordable price and was also involved in environmental education and training.
Q2: What are the biggest challenges in the country regarding water rights?
The biggest challenge is to provide efficient infrastructure that will reach the poorest communities
Q3: What are the biggest challenges in the country regarding sanitation rights?
The right to sanitation is a subject that we rarely hear about. People are usually more concerned with potable water. The biggest challenge that Ecuador faces right now is the lack of awareness of how preventable diseases such as diarrhea are liked to poor sanitation and hygiene.
Q4: What is the government doing to support water and sanitation development?
Last year, The government of Ecuador approved a new water law “Ley de Recursos Hídricos: Usos y Aprovechamiento del Agua” which was a great leap because this law supports the right of its citizens to have accessible, affordable clean and safe water for personal and domestic use in enough quantity and continuously. This law also prohibits the privatization of water and it cannot be subject to any trade agreement with the government, multilateral agency, domestic, foreign or private company. Its management is exclusively public or communal. Which is great news! However, there is still a lot to do in regards to law enforcement because the country has to deal with issues such as corruption and lack of effective management of the resource.
Q5: What is the health impact of unsafe water and sanitation upon the people in your region?
The biggest impact is observed in children, they sometimes have to miss school because of diarrhea or fever. Adults and children have to deal with parasites as well, these parasites can live in their bodies for years since they are still exposed so unsafe water sources.
Q6: What specifically can NGOs do to help the situation in Ecuador?
NGOs could be a source of information in regards to the relationship between health and water and sanitation. NGOs could push the government to enforce the water law and take more action. There is very little information about how much water linked diseases is costing the country as a whole. Maybe if the government realized how much of public spending in hospitals and clinics is destined to treat preventable diseases and how many working hours people are missing because of these diseases, maybe they would prioritize this issue.
Q7: Can you describe the conditions in the rural areas regarding water and sanitation?
The conditions in rural areas are very poor, people might have electricity but they don’t have potable water. Most of the time people in rural areas drink rainwater, which can be contaminated. I am not fully aware of what the sanitation situation is unfortunately.
Q8: To what extent does water and sanitation problems impact children in your region and what are the common water-borne diseases?
The most common problem for children is diarrheal diseases and parasites since children are often in contact with contaminated water sources and do not have proper hygiene habits. Children might miss days of school at the time and this could affect their school performance.
Environmental Engineer, PROCAPCON
Program Director (Azul Pura), Water Ecuador
Q1. Can you briefly describe your work in Ecuador?
I have worked in two different projects in Ecuador. The first one involved training 5 members of the community on constructing wooden molds for biosand filters for a poor community in Zaruma. This community has piped water but it is not potable. The purpose of the biosand filter is remove bacterial contamination and sediments that might be present in the water. This type of technology can provide about 12 to 18 L of filtered drinking water in one hour and it required maintenance, which is very important since lack of could affect the proper functioning of the filter.
I also worked as the Director of Programs of an NGO called Water Ecuador, which had small water treatment systems in different towns in the coastal area of Ecuador where it can be very difficult to obtain potable water. The NGO provided safe drinking water to the community at an affordable price and was also involved in environmental education and training.
Q2: What are the biggest challenges in the country regarding water rights?
The biggest challenge is to provide efficient infrastructure that will reach the poorest communities
Q3: What are the biggest challenges in the country regarding sanitation rights?
The right to sanitation is a subject that we rarely hear about. People are usually more concerned with potable water. The biggest challenge that Ecuador faces right now is the lack of awareness of how preventable diseases such as diarrhea are liked to poor sanitation and hygiene.
Q4: What is the government doing to support water and sanitation development?
Last year, The government of Ecuador approved a new water law “Ley de Recursos Hídricos: Usos y Aprovechamiento del Agua” which was a great leap because this law supports the right of its citizens to have accessible, affordable clean and safe water for personal and domestic use in enough quantity and continuously. This law also prohibits the privatization of water and it cannot be subject to any trade agreement with the government, multilateral agency, domestic, foreign or private company. Its management is exclusively public or communal. Which is great news! However, there is still a lot to do in regards to law enforcement because the country has to deal with issues such as corruption and lack of effective management of the resource.
Q5: What is the health impact of unsafe water and sanitation upon the people in your region?
The biggest impact is observed in children, they sometimes have to miss school because of diarrhea or fever. Adults and children have to deal with parasites as well, these parasites can live in their bodies for years since they are still exposed so unsafe water sources.
Q6: What specifically can NGOs do to help the situation in Ecuador?
NGOs could be a source of information in regards to the relationship between health and water and sanitation. NGOs could push the government to enforce the water law and take more action. There is very little information about how much water linked diseases is costing the country as a whole. Maybe if the government realized how much of public spending in hospitals and clinics is destined to treat preventable diseases and how many working hours people are missing because of these diseases, maybe they would prioritize this issue.
Q7: Can you describe the conditions in the rural areas regarding water and sanitation?
The conditions in rural areas are very poor, people might have electricity but they don’t have potable water. Most of the time people in rural areas drink rainwater, which can be contaminated. I am not fully aware of what the sanitation situation is unfortunately.
Q8: To what extent does water and sanitation problems impact children in your region and what are the common water-borne diseases?
The most common problem for children is diarrheal diseases and parasites since children are often in contact with contaminated water sources and do not have proper hygiene habits. Children might miss days of school at the time and this could affect their school performance.
