WASH News Latin America
News feed maintained by information specialists from IRC and partners.
Peru: Sedapal loses US$2mn daily due to illegal connections
20 Mar 08
Peru’s state-owned water utility Sedapal, serving capital Lima and neighboring city Callao, says it loses an estimated 6 million soles (US$ 2.1 million) daily due to illegal water connections. If the company had invested the amount lost through unbilled water, it would have been able to provide potable water to some 250,000 low-income inhabitants. [...]
Honduras: Environ prosecutor’s office investigates Agalteca mining project
20 Mar 08
Honduras’ environmental prosecutor’s office is investigating allegations from residents in Agalteca against an iron ore extraction quarry run by Italian Five Star Mining in Francisco Morazán department, prosecutor Juan Martínez told BNamericas.The accusation was filed in early January 2008, through the national environmental and forestry reporters association, cites excessive water extraction, desiccation of basins, damage [...]
Brazil: Bahia to receive over US$ 8 million for rainwater cisterns
20 Mar 08
Brazil’s ministry for social development and hunger relief signed a 15.1mn-real (US$ 8.7 million) contract with Bahia state to build 10,000 cisterns for rainwater harvesting in 2008. Each of the cement cisterns stores 16,000 litres and together they will benefit 60,000 people in 115 cities.The project started in 2003, and 243,000 tanks have already been [...]
Bolivia: Epsas rates higher than Aisa’s despite nationalisation
20 Mar 08
Bolivia’s state-owned water utility Epsas, serving La Paz and neighboring city El Alto, has actually increased both connection and service rates after taking over from concessionaire Aguas del Illimani (Aisa), former citizens pressure group Fejuve board member Carlos Rojas told BNamericas.Fejuve, which once included current President Evo Morales and former water minister Abel Mamani among [...]
Honduras: Japan grants US$16mn for potable water project
20 Mar 08
The Japanese International Corporation Agency (JICA) has given a granted of US$ 15.8 milion for the construction of a drinking water system, which will benefit 1 million residents from poor areas around Tegucigalpa. The works will be carried out by the national water utility Sanaa. The total project cost is US$17.4 million, of which the [...]
Honduras: Sanaa to resume mass cuts to recover US$5mn in unpaid bills
20 Mar 08
National water utility Sanaa will resume mass supply cuts in Tegucigalpa in the hope of recovering some 90mn lempiras (US$4.76mn) in unpaid bills. It needs the funds to finance a planned expansion of city’s water supply by 10Mm3.Source: Business News Americas [subscription site], 6 Feb 2008
Peru bets on desalination to ensure water supplies
15 Mar 08
LIMA (Reuters) - Peru plans to start desalinating water from the Pacific Ocean to make up for declining supplies from fast-melting glaciers affected by climate change, President Alan Garcia said. Desalination would be cheaper than pumping water over the Andes or from the Amazon rain forest to the coast, where [...]
Guatemala: Segeplan proposes national water authority
10 Mar 08
[Gobierno de Guatemala, 4 Feb 2008]Guatemala’s presidential planning office Segeplan (Secretaría de Planificación y Programación de la Presidencia) has proposed the creation of a national water authority, which will draw up a national water policy. The proposed authority will focus on expanding and improving drinking water coverage to 41 municipalities with the highest poverty levels.Read [...]
Ecuador, Guayaquil: campaign “Don’t Let History Repeat Itself” aimed at Bechtel
03 Mar 08
Activist NGO Food and Water Watch has launched a campaign to force Bechtel to pay all debts and fulfill its contractual obligations before selling off it concession for the management of Guayaquil city’s water supply service. Bechtel was involved in the failed privatisation of Cochabamba’s water supply in Bolivia which lead to the infamous “Water [...]
Mexico accused 200 times before LatAm water tribunal
03 Mar 08
Mexico has been accused 200 times before the Latin American Water Tribunal (LAWT), making it the country with the most complaints since hearings started in 2000, advisor for the entity’s scientific-technical commission Ricardo Valverde told BNamericas. “Not all of them have been taken to hearings,” he said.In 2007, 21 cases from Mexico plus one from [...]
