I moved from San Diego, CA in June of 2023 to Lake Atitlan, Guatemala. I had traveled all over the world for work and vacation but when I came to Lake Atitlan for the first time something was different. The sheer beauty initially struck me but as I dug deeper I became fascinated with the modern Mayan culture in the Western Highlands of Guatemala. As I dove in head first I quickly made some ignorant Gringo moves but as I bumped my head I wanted to learn more.
Along this journey of learning about Lake Atitlan and what makes it so special I learned that this amazing place is in dire need of help. I’ve learned that the indigenous people of Guatemala have long taken the greatest brunt of the suffering in this deeply rich country. One of the greatest ways that modern Mayans are suffering is with access to clean drinking water and sanitation.
This last week I had the opportunity to learn more about the watershed basin of Lake Atitlan . My journey led me to the Rotary Club on the lake and through Rotary I connected with Agua del Pueblo. Agua del Pueblo held a Water Summit here on the lake last week and I was able to attend. To say the least it fully invigorated me to get involved and address a crisis that we are facing on Lake Atitlan.
Our first day was filled with joy and celebration. We visited the community of Sanik Ya” in the mountains above San Lucas Toliman. Through the assistance of Agua del Pueblo, Rotary and the local government they brought water pumped through stainless steel pipes up the mountain from Lake Atitlan. We visited the water storage facility where the water is held that is pumped from the lake and then distributed to the local homes. We also met with a local farmer in Sanik Ya’ who shared with us the story of how the water had changed life for he and his family. He proudly shared how he had worked on the water project and now was raising cows to make yogurt and ice cream bars which he sells around Lake Atitlan. He has developed his business and opened a local cafe and animal learning center for children at the farm. In the afternoon we met with Dr. Paul Wse a pediatrician from Stanford University who has been working for years with the children of Guatemala. He shared with us the things that happen with children when they do not have clean water.
Our second day we visited the community of Vista Hermosa in the municipality of Santa Lucia Utatlan. There are about 100 families living in this town that had reached out to Agua del Pueblo for help. We met with the water committee of the town as well as the women leaders and the director of the government run elementary school. They explained that less rain over the last several years had brought crisis to their homes. They had a water pumping system that pumps water from a nearby river that feeds into Lake Atitlan. Today the river has gotten so small that they are unable to pump water. Women and children in town are walking up to an hour roundtrip to draw water from what is left of the river. The women do this by carrying a 25 or 40lb plastic jug on their head and they may need to do this 3 or 4 times per day. The elementary school also has days where the children need to bring their own water just to use the bathroom. Laundry is taken to the river to be washed. The water they draw from the river is not treated or filtered in any way and intestinal illnesses have increased. During our visit we took the walk down to the “river” with the people to experience firsthand what they were having to do to getting water. My local Rotary Club has teamed up with the Rotary Club of Anapolis, MD and Agua del Pueblo to bring water back to Vista Hermosa. The plan is to hand dig a well for town and also to provide a waste water treatment system. In order to do that we needed to meet with the mayor who oversees Vista Hermosa so after lunch we went to the mayor’s office and met with him and his councilmen and explained the problem and our proposed solution. The meeting could not have gone better. At first it felt like he wasn’t receptive but after a few minutes of discussion he happily agreed to provide the skilled labor needed for the project as well as contribute financially to the work. The councilmen were especially interested in the waste water processing systems that Agua del Pueblo had recently installed in two neighborhoods in their jurisdiction. They asked to join us for a site visit and we spent the rest of the day learning about waste water treatment systems and their benefits. The basic system collects and filters the waste water from homes in the neighborhood producing fertilizer and irrigation water. One local farmer explained to us how he is using the water that comes out of the system to grow Lilies which his family sells at a local market.
I had to miss day 3 but the fourth day we had the opportunity to learn about a study that is being conducted in Panajachel which is one of the largest towns on Lake Atitlan. The Rotary Club of Lake Atitlan has been supporting this effort. We met with doctors and scientists to learn about a study being done in collaboration with EcoFiltro where they are testing ways to remove arsenic from drinking water. Arsenic has been found in the water in Panajachel and this team is trying too address the issue.
Our last day we ended in the community of Chuti Estancia. This town is located above Lake Atitlan and is another town where Agua del Pueblo and Rotary have worked with the local municipality to bring water to their town. For two years the teams worked to bring a pumped water system to the 400 K’iche and Kaqchikel families of the town.
Комментарии