Ramal de Tierra Firme Water Project A Report for the Blue Planet Run ...
Ramal de Tierra Firme Water Project A Report for the Blue Planet Run Foundation
Project Location:
Honduras
Reporting Date:
March 6, 2007
Grant Amount:
$20,000
CARE Contact:
Susan Davis CARE Atlanta
Background The northern Honduran coast is home to over 300 families who form a group of communities known as Ramal de Tierra Firme. The common livelihoods of farming, fishing, and cattle-rearing barely serve to make ends meet for the area’s more than 2,000 residents. Households in this remote locale have no electricity, no public transportation, and critically, no access to clean water.
CARE studied these communities and found several inter-related reasons for their water difficulties, which rendered families vulnerable to serious waterborne diseases. First, although two water systems served the area, each system was in desperate need of repair. Second, the local water source had become polluted as a result of extensive cattle breeding, use of chemical fertilizers, and an absence of latrines and sewage treatment. Finally, water committee members lacked the capacity and knowledge to properly maintain and manage the systems for which they were responsible. Backed by generous funding from the Blue Planet Run Foundation and other donors, CARE responded by developing the Ramal de Tierra Firme Water Project, which is currently being implemented in 10 communities: Agua Fría, Boca Cerrada, Flores de San Juan, Jurutungo, Los Indios, Nueva Jerusalén, Punta de Rieles, San Félix, Tierra Firme and Trípoli. In this initiative, CARE is working with local partners to consolidate the two water systems into one refurbished distribution network. Highlights include the construction of a dam, a sand remover, a sewage treatment plant, and a pipeline connecting both tanks. Additionally, the initiative entails a separate water distribution network for the remote community of Boca Cerrada, which can be reached only by boat and has not previously been connected to any water system. The project also has consolidated the two local water administration boards, and is working with the new board to create sustainable improvements such as latrines, wash basins, and sump drains, and even energy-efficient wood-burning stoves. Furthermore, the project emphasizes training of community leaders and families, as well as long-term protection of the micro-basin. Efforts are currently underway to complete the initiative’s aims. This report describes successes and challenges to date since the project’s inception in February 2006. Activities and Accomplishments CARE’s partners in this endeavor include municipality of La Masica and the government of the Commonwealth of Municipalities of the Center of Atlántida, (known as MAMUCA), of which the Ramal de Tierra Firme communities are a part. The project’s activities and accomplishments to date can be grouped into five key areas: Constructing the water system; Building sanitation facilities; Strengthening the water management boards and committees; Training community members; and Protecting the micro-basin. Constructing the Water System: Thus far, the project’s most significant accomplishments have been the completion of the water system’s catchment facility and the sand remover (which requires only minimal finishing touches). The project has procured materials and is in the process of installing the pipeline that will connect the system’s various components. Meanwhile, construction of the treatment plant 2
is in the final stage of planning and preparation. Table 1 provides further detail of construction progress. Table 1: Progress on the Water System Participating Activity Municipality Communities Ramal de Tierra Firme Catchment works La Masica and La Masica Ramal de Tierra Firme Construction of sand remover La Masica and La Masica Ramal de Tierra Firme Main pipeline La Masica and La Masica Construction of treatment plant Ramal de Tierra Firme La Masica Home water connections in Ramal de Tierra Firme La Masica Boca Cerrada
Progress 100% 98% 9% 1% 0%
Building Sanitation Facilities: The project’s sanitation improvements include not only latrines but home water tanks, ground drains, and more efficient wood-burning stoves. CARE has faced a challenge in speedily constructing some facilities; the project area is in a low-lying portion of the San Juan River basin, which means that elevated latrines and ground drain sumps must be built along with filtration fields. Despite these constraints, progress continues and is described in Table 2. Table 2: Progress on Sanitation Improvements # Structure Planned # Built Progress Latrines 150 56 37% Home water tanks
132
63
48%
Ground drains Improved woodburning stoves
120
30
25%
70
35
50%
Strengthening the Community Water Boards and Committees: To ensure that project goals are met and that accomplishments are sustainable for the long term, CARE has emphasized strengthening the capacity and knowledge of water boards and committees. First, the project facilitated a revamping of the administrative structure and personnel. The two previous boards merged into one, and newly elected board members took up responsibilities in partnership with CARE. Project staff have thus far visited board members on 16 occasions in an effort to provide support and coaching, and have extensively trained the board as well as committee participants. Training topics have included: o o
Roles and responsibilities of the water board; Financial administration;
3
o o o o o
Community mobilization and development; Personal hygiene and disease prevention; Gender equality/women’s participation; Water system maintenance; and Micro-basin protection.
Training Community Members: Recognizing the importance of educating and involving families in water solutions, the project instructed residents how to construct drains, home water tanks, latrines, and improved stoves. Household members even learned how to grow specific crops in their own gardens; so far 46 family gardens have been created. The water board’s basic sanitation committee actively promoted hygiene education and behavioral changes through home visits as well as through a community-wide sanitation campaign. In addition, the project organized school sanitation committees to reach children in grades four through six and by extension, their households. Protecting the Micro-Basin: In a joint effort, the Ramal de Tierra Firme water board and the municipality of La Masica have taken responsibility for cleaning up the micro-basin area. Furthermore, MAMUCA is promoting environmentally friendly practices in a neighboring community that lies at a higher elevation and thus can affect the water quality of the micro-basin. And finally, MAMUCA has designed a management plan for the maintenance of the entire watershed. Expenditure Report The $20,000 donation from Blue Planet Run has been expended in full. A line-item expenditure report is provided below. Line Item 1. Salaries and benefits (CARE staff salaries and benefits) 2. Equipment purchases (computer, communication and office) 3. Travel and transportation 4. Construction materials and services 5. Rent and occupancy 6. Financing, depreciation and miscellaneous Subtotal 7. CARE HQ administration and technical support TOTAL
Cost $ 1,393 80 318 16,057 311 41 18,200 1,800 $ 20,000
4
Conclusion In a remote group of communities in northern Honduras, where impoverished families have suffered from a lack of drinkable water, CARE has intervened with the Ramal de Tierra Firme Water Project to protect residents’ health and foster environmentally friendly behaviors. By the time CARE’s efforts in this worthwhile endeavor have concluded, over 2,000 women, men, and children will have access to clean water and sanitation facilities, as well as having received training on hygiene and other matters important to maintaining a safe water supply. Furthermore, the local water board and committee members will be equipped with the skills and knowledge to sustain the project’s successes, and will work together with the local authorities to protect the micro-basin. On behalf of the families of Ramal de Tierra Firme who are already benefiting from these efforts, CARE gratefully acknowledges the investment of the Blue Planet Run Foundation. 2 March 2007
5
Project Location:
Honduras
Reporting Date:
March 6, 2007
Grant Amount:
$20,000
CARE Contact:
Susan Davis CARE Atlanta
Background The northern Honduran coast is home to over 300 families who form a group of communities known as Ramal de Tierra Firme. The common livelihoods of farming, fishing, and cattle-rearing barely serve to make ends meet for the area’s more than 2,000 residents. Households in this remote locale have no electricity, no public transportation, and critically, no access to clean water.
CARE studied these communities and found several inter-related reasons for their water difficulties, which rendered families vulnerable to serious waterborne diseases. First, although two water systems served the area, each system was in desperate need of repair. Second, the local water source had become polluted as a result of extensive cattle breeding, use of chemical fertilizers, and an absence of latrines and sewage treatment. Finally, water committee members lacked the capacity and knowledge to properly maintain and manage the systems for which they were responsible. Backed by generous funding from the Blue Planet Run Foundation and other donors, CARE responded by developing the Ramal de Tierra Firme Water Project, which is currently being implemented in 10 communities: Agua Fría, Boca Cerrada, Flores de San Juan, Jurutungo, Los Indios, Nueva Jerusalén, Punta de Rieles, San Félix, Tierra Firme and Trípoli. In this initiative, CARE is working with local partners to consolidate the two water systems into one refurbished distribution network. Highlights include the construction of a dam, a sand remover, a sewage treatment plant, and a pipeline connecting both tanks. Additionally, the initiative entails a separate water distribution network for the remote community of Boca Cerrada, which can be reached only by boat and has not previously been connected to any water system. The project also has consolidated the two local water administration boards, and is working with the new board to create sustainable improvements such as latrines, wash basins, and sump drains, and even energy-efficient wood-burning stoves. Furthermore, the project emphasizes training of community leaders and families, as well as long-term protection of the micro-basin. Efforts are currently underway to complete the initiative’s aims. This report describes successes and challenges to date since the project’s inception in February 2006. Activities and Accomplishments CARE’s partners in this endeavor include municipality of La Masica and the government of the Commonwealth of Municipalities of the Center of Atlántida, (known as MAMUCA), of which the Ramal de Tierra Firme communities are a part. The project’s activities and accomplishments to date can be grouped into five key areas: Constructing the water system; Building sanitation facilities; Strengthening the water management boards and committees; Training community members; and Protecting the micro-basin. Constructing the Water System: Thus far, the project’s most significant accomplishments have been the completion of the water system’s catchment facility and the sand remover (which requires only minimal finishing touches). The project has procured materials and is in the process of installing the pipeline that will connect the system’s various components. Meanwhile, construction of the treatment plant 2
is in the final stage of planning and preparation. Table 1 provides further detail of construction progress. Table 1: Progress on the Water System Participating Activity Municipality Communities Ramal de Tierra Firme Catchment works La Masica and La Masica Ramal de Tierra Firme Construction of sand remover La Masica and La Masica Ramal de Tierra Firme Main pipeline La Masica and La Masica Construction of treatment plant Ramal de Tierra Firme La Masica Home water connections in Ramal de Tierra Firme La Masica Boca Cerrada
Progress 100% 98% 9% 1% 0%
Building Sanitation Facilities: The project’s sanitation improvements include not only latrines but home water tanks, ground drains, and more efficient wood-burning stoves. CARE has faced a challenge in speedily constructing some facilities; the project area is in a low-lying portion of the San Juan River basin, which means that elevated latrines and ground drain sumps must be built along with filtration fields. Despite these constraints, progress continues and is described in Table 2. Table 2: Progress on Sanitation Improvements # Structure Planned # Built Progress Latrines 150 56 37% Home water tanks
132
63
48%
Ground drains Improved woodburning stoves
120
30
25%
70
35
50%
Strengthening the Community Water Boards and Committees: To ensure that project goals are met and that accomplishments are sustainable for the long term, CARE has emphasized strengthening the capacity and knowledge of water boards and committees. First, the project facilitated a revamping of the administrative structure and personnel. The two previous boards merged into one, and newly elected board members took up responsibilities in partnership with CARE. Project staff have thus far visited board members on 16 occasions in an effort to provide support and coaching, and have extensively trained the board as well as committee participants. Training topics have included: o o
Roles and responsibilities of the water board; Financial administration;
3
o o o o o
Community mobilization and development; Personal hygiene and disease prevention; Gender equality/women’s participation; Water system maintenance; and Micro-basin protection.
Training Community Members: Recognizing the importance of educating and involving families in water solutions, the project instructed residents how to construct drains, home water tanks, latrines, and improved stoves. Household members even learned how to grow specific crops in their own gardens; so far 46 family gardens have been created. The water board’s basic sanitation committee actively promoted hygiene education and behavioral changes through home visits as well as through a community-wide sanitation campaign. In addition, the project organized school sanitation committees to reach children in grades four through six and by extension, their households. Protecting the Micro-Basin: In a joint effort, the Ramal de Tierra Firme water board and the municipality of La Masica have taken responsibility for cleaning up the micro-basin area. Furthermore, MAMUCA is promoting environmentally friendly practices in a neighboring community that lies at a higher elevation and thus can affect the water quality of the micro-basin. And finally, MAMUCA has designed a management plan for the maintenance of the entire watershed. Expenditure Report The $20,000 donation from Blue Planet Run has been expended in full. A line-item expenditure report is provided below. Line Item 1. Salaries and benefits (CARE staff salaries and benefits) 2. Equipment purchases (computer, communication and office) 3. Travel and transportation 4. Construction materials and services 5. Rent and occupancy 6. Financing, depreciation and miscellaneous Subtotal 7. CARE HQ administration and technical support TOTAL
Cost $ 1,393 80 318 16,057 311 41 18,200 1,800 $ 20,000
4
Conclusion In a remote group of communities in northern Honduras, where impoverished families have suffered from a lack of drinkable water, CARE has intervened with the Ramal de Tierra Firme Water Project to protect residents’ health and foster environmentally friendly behaviors. By the time CARE’s efforts in this worthwhile endeavor have concluded, over 2,000 women, men, and children will have access to clean water and sanitation facilities, as well as having received training on hygiene and other matters important to maintaining a safe water supply. Furthermore, the local water board and committee members will be equipped with the skills and knowledge to sustain the project’s successes, and will work together with the local authorities to protect the micro-basin. On behalf of the families of Ramal de Tierra Firme who are already benefiting from these efforts, CARE gratefully acknowledges the investment of the Blue Planet Run Foundation. 2 March 2007
5
