Saturday, May 30, 2015

Visiting the Water Treatment Plant in Paita

 
Here's How the Water is Treated
 
Manager Showing Where Water is Distributed

 
The mayor contacted the water treatment plant and arranged for a tour for our team. We were treated like diplomats and welcomed with open arms. We took a two hour tour of the plant and met with the plant engineer.
 
Our tour began with a manager, explaining where water is treated in the state of Piura and how it is treated at the plant. 
 We took a tour of their laboratory where the water is tested every two hours by a biologist. 


The MSOE team, the Plant Biologist and Manager
The Entire Team
The Plant Biologist and Sister Matilde, our Translator

The plant is 36 years old and needs newer equipment. The management has done a good job maintaining all of the equipment. However, they would like to upgrade  the equipment due to its age.
 
I don't have any experience with water treatment. I am not from  a student or engineer from MSOE  to know if the water treatment was done correctly. However, listening to the conversation between the Engineer, who is responsible for the entire plant, the manager who is responsible for the water treatment, and the MSOE team, it seems as though the water treatment plant is treating the water correctly in this plant.  It seems to me that the problem with the water occurs once the water leaves the plant.  I know that Doug will probably write an explanation in another blog post to better explain the process.

As we were getting ready to leave, the mayor sent a team of officials to the water plant to meet with Doug.


Officials From the Mayors Office, Doug and the Sisters
Let's talk about the very poor areas of Peru. In the neighborhoods that are land invasions, (the people make a temporary home and wait for the municipality to give them a title which could take a year or two) the people do not have water tanks, and most don't have electricity.  Outside businesses deliver water to their homes. Many of the businesses are not licensed. We found out that some water delivery trucks steal water right from the river and don't do any treatment. Other water delivery trucks may steal water directly from the municipality water pipes. This is another way of contaminating the water.

The people in settlements, (settlements started as land invasions and were given title to their homes)  do not have plumbing in their homes. The city delivers water to a water tank assigned to 15 - 20 families. Professor Doug Nelson tested the water from one of the tanks and it did not show that it was contaminated with any bacteria. The people purchase water from the tank. Some families purchase 20 buckets of water every few days. The buckets do have covers. However, they can easily become contaminated...dirty buckets, dirty hands, water being transferred from the truck to the tank. Who knows how it's happening. We just know it's happening.

If families have enough money for gas or coal, they boil their water. Otherwise, they use the water right from the tank.

As for the industries, they get water 24 hours a day. For other parts of the city, such as the home of the sisters, they only get water for two hours a day. According to Doug, this is another way that the water is contaminated. When the water is shut off in the for those 22 hours, bacteria has a chance of entering the municipality water pipes.

In the homes that receive water for only two hours a day, the water from the municipality goes to a tank in the ground, located inside the home. That water is then pumped from the ground tank to a large tank located on the roofs of the homes. When water is needed for daily use, such as for flushing toilets or washing dishes, the water is received from the tanks on the roofs. The ground or roof tanks can also harbor and breed bacteria. The water was tested in Sister Monica's home and it was found to have a minute amount of bacteria. For people that are healthy, this water is drinkable. However, this bacteria can cause problems to those with compromised immune systems. That doesn't mean that the water couldn't have other types of harmful bacteria, such as e-coli, the next week. That's why boiling the water or using a water filter/purifier is important. 

Submitted by Deb Passino


1 comment:

  1. Deb, soon we give you your honorary degree!

    Essentially all that Deb says is how I see it. I can't tell you were any pathogen comes from, but the opportunities for contamination are nearly endless. Education of the public is key in the short term. Large investments are being done to improve the infrastructure. I am concerned that the funds are from private corporations. It will take 2 years to get the current upgrades done, minimum. The next round(s) will have a bigger impact on the people.

    Doug

    ReplyDelete