Intag Climate Change

Beautiful Intag has turned rather soggy in our absence. the rainy season has truly arrived and it has been absolutely tipping it down for the last 4 days. The rainy season also signals the start of landslides on the road. On the way out of Intag today the road was blocked by rocks, though fortunately they were small enough to be moved by hand. Once the track was cleared one pickup truck in the queue managed to pass before more rocks started to fall. Every year people are killed by landslides along this road but this time noone was hurt.

Clearing rocks from the road to be able to pass - the road is turned to a river as the rain keeps falling.

The trusty pickup gets us anywhere!

Having finished construction work in Limones/Villadora Tom and I took a much needed break from the non-stop work. I went back to the UK for 10 days to go to a friend´s wedding attended by the whole bunch on friends from school (was that really 6 uears ago?) and took the chance to see the boyfriend and family. Tom went cycling in Ecuador (see his blog: www.ecuador-tom2010.blogspot.com). The way the days worked out and the coincidence of a national holiday in the same period meant we were not in Intag for 3 weeks. The Day(s) of the Dead, where people celebrate with their deceased loved ones, seems to me a more meaningful alternative to Halloween, and here people have a five day weekend to celebrate!

When we were last in Intag in mid-October people were distressed because the rain hadn´t arrived. Rain is expected at the start of October to be able to plant "Morocho" (a type of maize) and Frejol (beans), and for the young crops to be watered thoroughly fo the following 2 months.

Measuring the pipeline in Limones back in October amongst bare fields, prepared for planting, just waiting for rain.

In Ecuador there is no social security so people are heavily reliant on their livelihoods (as well as the family unit). There is a lot of talk of climate change here. There is concern for their crops as last year the seasons were reversed, with a rainy dry season and a dry wet season. Similar concern is felt for the water supply, that the springs will dry up and they will be left without water.

The last few days I could really relate to that panic. As the water is often not captured well at the source, surface water enters the system. Especially at times of heavy rain, like we have seen this week, mud, sediment and whatever else can fit down the pipe arrived at the PRODECI house in Nangulvi where I was staying. Having a shower suddenly lsot it´s purpose when it was mud coming out the shower head! More seriously, cooking and drinking became a big worry.When Tom and I go to Intag we take bottled water but most people don´t have that luxury, so if they want to drink they use what comes out of the tap. At least the water was flwoing - in the community of Apuela today one of the spring capture points was blocked with leaves and the remaining flow rate was only sufficient to serve around half of the community- leaving around 60 households without.

Apuela is our next project and the first few days there have been very interesting.

Construction weeks 1 and 2: Elevated Tank

It´s been a very hectic three weeks of construction here so I shall tell the story in pictures, starting with weeks one and two. The first two weeks were spent on construction of the elevated tank at the school in Limones, as well as arranging materials for the school and the remote spring capture site.

Installation of automatic air valves with the operator, Nivo. The manual air valves which the system had previously were impractical as they are located 2-3 hours from the operator´s home! This meant that air blocks often affected flow.

Finalising materials and pipe fittings to be bought prior to construction. A rigorous system was vital in order to keep track of which accessory was intended for which part of the works.

Last minute calculations in one of the classrooms at the school, to investigate a potential solution that was suggested a short time before construction was due to start. The operator, Nivo, preferred the option of an on-line tank but calculations being done here showed that this would not guarantee supply to the school. At this time there was a lot of pressure to complete construction well before the end-Nov funding deadline. Unfortunately this coincided with Pete´s visit, but he was able to help us with our investigations!

Materials begin to arrive on site. Each load arrived a day late, resulting in half a day´s lost work while waiting for the steel to arrive.

Four "mingas" (community work days) were vital for the completion of the works. Above, a dumper working on improving the road close to the school offers to help transport stone for forming bases of structures. Here people who turned out for the first "minga" help to load the bucket.

Work days such as this are commonplace here in Ecuador, from helping to paint you child´s classroom to heavy labour to improve your water supply such as this.

For competing the works we designed to improve the spring capture, access posed one of the key challenges. The closest road access is around 2km away from the spring so all material was carried down by volunteers from the community or by mule. Even this track is around an hour´s drive away fromthe school, where all the materials were kept, and paying a truck to transport heavy material such as sand and cement cost around $30 a trip.

Work begins at the school with digging of foundations for the three legs of the elevated tank.

The maestro (foreman), Don Miguel Farinango, bends rebar to shape on site.

Fixing rebar cages for the tank columns in the school playground.

Concrete is mixed by hand on the floor.

The site office...

Rebar cages for the columns are fixed into place with wire.

Preparing the column shuttering on a misty morning in the playground.

A type of cane called "Guadua" is used to form a strong scaffolding structure from which to work.

The slab is cast on which the tank will be plaved. Helpers from the community are brought in to assist for the day.

finishing touches are put to the structure- the tank has been placed and the posts to form edge protection are cast in place.

Another minga (community work day). this time of parents of children at the school. They replace a leaking pipe, dig a trench for the new pipe connection from the network and also dig a soakaway which will be used for the tank washout and the wash station, which previously simply drained onto the soil and formed a permanently muddy area.

Filling the soakaway with stones

And finally, a much needed break in Otavalo on Friday afternoon, two weeks into construction. Here I have found myself a lovely spot overlooking the famous Otavalo market, in which to read my book and watch the activity below.

Investigations Begin

The water system in Limones and Villadora is the first chance for Tom and I to really get to grips with how a gravity fed system looks here in Ecuador. One of the great attractions of working here in the opportunity to get my hands dirty and to learn by doing, and I'm making the most of it by getting involved wherever I can. It's going to be tough going back to an office after this!

Taking a closer look at the water flowing into the resrve tank (above). This tank of 12.5m3 capacity serves around 33 households. It overflows during the night, which has been cited as the reason why the water is not chlorinated.

The chlorination tank sits disused on top of the reserve tank, above.

The realities of maintaining this system began to hit home on our first trek to see the spring where the water for the system comes out of the ground and is channelled into the piped system The walk took around 3 hours of hard uphill hiking. When we arrived I was so tired Ihad forgotten what i had gone up there for! My fitness will definitely improve here...

En route we followed the pipework and had a chance to see the various infrastructure along the way: air valves, washout valves and break pressure tanks, such as the one seen in the background of the photograph above. Here Nivo, the operator, and his wife Maria point out the reserve tank, which lies across the valley we have just walked, to Tom. They do not own any form of transport, making their work all the more time consuming as they have to walk everywhere.

Here Nivo shows Tom the water meters that are used. Users pay a monthly fee of $2 for the connection, for which they can use a basic allowance of 25m3 of water, around 830 l per day. For each m3 above the basic allowance used a slighly elevated price is paid. My immediate thought is that this is a generous basic allowance which could be reduced if the system is overstretched. However, there is strong resistance in the communities to this and as any changes would have to be approved by the water regulator and passed my majority vote in the community this is unlikely to be achievable.

The operator has been describing a whole range of issues, such as:
- Difficulty detecting leaks, having to search for the pipe and the leak for in some cases months before finding the rupture
- Pressure: the two communities are essentially on two levels, with the water serving Limones at high level first and then passing down a steep slope to Villadora. At times there is excess pressure in Villadora, with water coming out of the taps "like milk"
- The pipe crossing a valley and prone to rupture at the low point due to the high pressure
- At one location a hole has been made in the pipe to release air, but can also allow contamination to enter at this point.
- Some of the infrastructure that was built by the Government is of unsatisfactory quality
- Insufficient storage volume in the reserve tank at the head of the system
- Misuse of water: some people use the water in large quantities for commercial gain yet pay the same rates as domestic users
- People being unwilling to pay excess use charges or fines for non-attendance at community work days


At this stage it is difficult to ascertain the extent and relevance of these issues and to understand exactly what impact they have on the provision of clean water. It is also clear that there are some deep-seated social divisions between the two communities which we as outsiders are in no position to tackle.

Introduction to Ibarra and Intag

Ibarra is a city in the north of Ecuador and is the capital of Imbabura province. The office of the charity we are working for, PRODECI, is in Ibarra, though their work is carried out in rural communities outside the city. As Tom and I are volunteers PRODECI do not pay us, but they are providing us with a flat here in Ibarra, shared with two other volunteers from Spain. It's a brilliant arrangement as the housemates, Silvia and Maite, are lovely and speaking spanish at homes is a big help.

The first week at work saw at introduction to the area of Intag, one of two geographical areas in which PRODECI works. Valle de Intag is a remote valley with steep sides. The only access is via a rutted, unmade track that runs for around 100km, in one side and out the other.

Although Ibarra is only around 70km away from the PRODECI house in Intag, the journey takes around 2 1/2 hours due to the state of the track. But at least it's passable- during the rainy season it is common for landslides to block access completely.

This lake is at the start of the track into Intag, at the foot of Volcan Cotacachi. The lake is called Cuicocha, meaning "guinea pig lake", because of the shape of the islands that rise out of the crater. This is only one of the fantastic views on the way into Intag, and due to the changeing altitude one seems to pass through different climatic zones.

A pineapple plant; banana tree and a young banana leaf at dawn with morning dew; Banana plants grow to their impressive stature to produce only one crop of bananas. After that the trunk is chopped down for new shoots to sprout.

The altitude is notable in Ecuador, with areas such as Quito at around 2,800m and coastal and jungle areas to the west and east of the Andes at near sea level. At high altitudes fruit such as apples can be grown in the near-British climate, whereas lower down, at 1,000m, tropical fruit trees of banana and papaya fill the hillsides.

The village of Garcia Morena, one of the largest communities in Intag, shrouded in mist. I'm told the view from up here is fantastic normally!

Along with a little general orientation and trying to get to grips with the geography of this extensive valley, we were introduced to the project on which we will be working. The communities of Limones and Villadora, which share a water system, have asked PRODECI for funds to make improvements to their existing system and Tom and I have been sent to carry out the technical evaluation. The first person we met was Anibal Pasquel, known as "Nivo", who is the operator of the water system (seen on the left in the photo below).

Initially I I am finding it difficult to adjust to hearing a new accent and a lot of new technical vocabulary! My first impression is that he is highly knowledgeable. It makes me wonder whether we are required here or whether funding should be made available directly to people such as Nivo who wish to make improvements to the system.

Access to the existing infrastructure is sometimes tricky but Nivo, who must be in his sixties, bounds up and down the mountains with ease!

Moving on: from Quito to Ibarra

So, I´ve been in Ecuador for just over 2 weeks now and plenty has happened. I am here with Tom who is also keeping a wonderful and comprehensive blog, here:

ecuador-tom2010.blogspot.com

In Quito I was at the Simon Bolivar spanish school to consolidate my learning. The school is brilliant because they organise a lot of activities outside of classes. The first weekend I went on a trip to Mindo and met many of the people who have since become good friends. The only trouble being that they´re mostly German so we don´t practice our Spanish together much...

In Mindo, a community within the cloud forest of the same name, huts are nestled within dense greenery and the air is filled with the call of exotic birds. It was on this weekend that I first saw a Hummingbird, though the Toucans, which apparently also live here in large numbers, eluded me.

My colleague Tom Russel and I in Mindo, feeling very pleased with the beautiful surroundings in which we found ourselves!

Back at the Spanish school we discovered they also run salsa classes twice a week. Salsa is a big force here and it helps to know how to dance when going out in the evening! I remember my first night out, in Mindo, everyone stood around the edge of the dancefloor until salsa music was put on, at which point the dancefloor came alive.

So, Quito has had it´s ups and downs. During the first few days I was bowled over by how much I was learning and how new everything felt. Then one evening towards the end of the first week Tom and I were struck simultaneously by sickness- we didn´t go back to the place where we had had lunch, and I have since learned to ask whether the juice is made with purified water! Unfortunately I don't have photographs of the first two weeks in Quito, as I think the best prevention from robbery is not to carry anything of value. My colleague Tom learnt the hard way about Quito robbers as he had his SLR camera stolen while exploring the old town. Fortunately the insurance money allowed him to replace it.

Relaxing on the beach in Puerto Lopez!

We decided to spend the second weekend at the beach at Puerto Lopez and it was the perfect cure for illness. It is a 10 hour bus ride from Quito but there are very comfortable night buses that cost around $10 - a dollar an hour! The buses are just one of the things that work fantastically well here. So much about Ecuador is very developed, the people are very friendly, Quito has fantastic parks, an amazing skate park and beautiful grafiti pieces throughout the city that indicate the community and organisation of the city. But at the same time, in this country where it rains almost every day you can´t drink the tap water and even the main Basilica in Quito has big gaps in the walls.

With the first two weeks behind us it's time to leave the holiday atmosphere and beach excursions behind and get to work in Ibarra, our home for the next six months.

Preparation

Well, I've just finished my exams and there's a lot to do before I leave... Vaccinations, Visa, Training, Fundraising... I should probably start at the beginning: I am going to Ecuador to spend 6 months designing and constructing rural water supply infrastructure. I was selected by Engineers without Borders (EWB) to work with PRODECI, a non-governmental organisation in Ecuador which aims to improve the quality of life for people in the remote mountains in the north of the country.

I have always wanted to work in development engineering and am thrilled to be able to get started straight after my studies. For now though there is a huge amount to be done before I get on the aeroplane on the 2nd July so I'd best get on with it!

Further information on the placement can be found here:

http://www.ewb-uk.org/programmes/placements/2010/PRODECI