Ecuador Clean Water Access Project

The Tufts EWB Ecuador Chapter is currently working in the Santa Estefanía de Malta Pura community in Chontapunta, Ecuador on a clean water access project. This community’s current water supply is a contaminated, open stream with a lot of sediment that is located about a mile away from most homes. Additionally, the water distribution system is 10 years old and consists of an exposed 2” water main to bring the water from the stream into the community connected to a series of distribution hoses and one 5,000 L storage tank. The system is leaking, deteriorating and doesn’t have any water treatment system in place. During the dry season, water doesn’t reach the houses furthest from the stream and even with the storage tank, there isn’t enough water available to meet the community’s demand. In order to begin to address this need, we are partnering with a local NGO called Hombro a Hombro (Shoulder to Shoulder) to redesign the water catchment system and distribution network for the community.

This summer, we plan to visit the community for the first time to meet the community members and perform preliminary assessments. Travelling to the community is a crucial part of the project process as it enables our chapter to build strong, lasting relationships and truly understand how to best benefit the community we are working with.

Your support will go towards allowing the Santa Estefanía de Malta Pura community to have access to consistent, clean water, something that we all have access to on a daily basis. Clean water is a simple need but it has the power to change lives. Clean water gives children the opportunity to stay in school, learn, and grow their potential, to be healthy and lets their parents live with one less burden on their minds.

Thank you so much for your support!