Programs / Water / Communities / El Retiro «

 

About El Retiro

El Retiro is a small community with a population of 435 people living in

around 120 homes in the mountainous municipality of Morocelí. Prior

to Water Brigades' arrival, people in El Retiro lacked access to clean

water, hygiene and sanitation infrastructure, healthcare, and education. 

Common colds, parasites, and diarrheal disease were prevalent. Yet,

healthcare was not readily available as the nearest health center is

about thirty minutes away.  Further complicating matters, few homes

have concrete floors, properly functioning latrines, proper water

storage, or efficient stoves with chimneys.  School is offered until sixth

grade in the community.  Students who attend secondary school must

walk to Buena Vista, which is a thirty minute walk from El Retiro. 

Thus, most children leave school and begin to work in agriculture to

support their families.  The average family income is estimated to be

750 Lempiras per month ($1.00 per day).

 

El Retiro's Water Challenge

El Retiro has never had a centralized water system that provides

access to the entire community.  Several years ago, some workers

from within the community built a small water catchment tank that

collects water from two of the community's strongest springs,

funneling water into a ¾ - 1 inch plastic pipe that, through varying

alternating lengths of hose and pipe, connects to approximately

25 houses in the lower-lying sector of the community.  The water is piped

directly from the source to the houses with no central tank for storage and treatment, negatively affecting the quality and quantity of water arriving to the connected houses.

 

The majority of the families whose houses are not connected to this distribution network access water from one of the many small streams and springs located throughout the community.  A number of homes have connected hoses to one of these water sources to bring the water straight to their houses, while others walk to the nearest sources to bathe, wash clothes, and collect and carry water for household use.  During the dry season, some of these sources dry up, and people have to travel farther away from their homes to access water.  There are also two wells with hand pumps installed in El Retiro, but one of the wells has a defunct hand pump, and the other access water of bad quality.  Regardless of how they access water, there is no central treatment, and few families treat their drinking water within their homes, increasing the risk of contracting waterborne sicknesses caused by bacteria and parasites present in untreated water.

 

The community of El Retiro is very well organized, with a recently formed 9 member Water Council that has already been sworn in by the local mayor.  However, there has been no water fee established or paid by the community or a plumber trained to maintain the current dam structure or wells prior to the arrival of Global Brigades.

 

The Water Solution for El Retiro

Water Brigaders from16 different universities worked in El

Retiro from December 2012 to March 2013.  During that time,

these volunteers worked with community members to:
     •  Install a new dam at the water source with a control and cleaning

        valve
     •  Build and paint a 10,000 gallon tank with chlorinator
     •  Dig approximately 10,000 meters of trench and install pipeline
     •  Connect 91 houses, 2 schools, 2 churches and 1 community center
     •  Paint 64 educational signs to place around the community
     •  Provide educational seminars to children in the community on water 
        and health related topics

 

To ensure the sustainability of the project, a new nine member Water Council and a Basic Sanitation Committee were established and trained by Water Brigades. Two community plumbers were also identified and trained to maintain the new system. 

The community of El Retiro united to build their new water system alongside student volunteers. Not only did  they dig trench and lay pipeline, but they also supported student volunteers hosting educational activities promoting healthy behaviors in the community. Together, student volunteers and community members worked together to host a Health and Hygiene fair. Moreover, all participated in a cultural exchange featuring acts ranging from traditional Honduran singing to Bollywood dances at the project inaugeration in July 2013.

 

 

Water Brigades Chapters that Worked in El Retiro
Water Brigades Chapter	Month	Volunteers
DePaul University	December 2012	13
University of Rochester	January 2013	14
St. Louis University	January 2013	19
University of Virginia	January 2013	14
UC Berkeley	January 2013	13
Boston University	January 2013	12
Mt. Allison University	February 2013	13
University of Victoria	February 2013	7
Purdue University	March 2013	7
Wayne State	March 2013	5
UC Davis	March 2013	13
Washington University in St. Louis	March 2013	17
Stonybrook College	March 2013	10
Indiana University	March 2013	10
UNC Chapel Hill	March 2013	20
University of Southern California	March 2013	6

 

 

Current Status

Last Visit: July 9, 2014
The Global Brigades' Water Team and student interns conducted a follow-up visit in La Concepción on July 9, 2014. By meeting with the Water Council, they determined that there have been no major problems with the system other than the fact that five homes do not receive water if all of the other houses have opened their taps. Thus, they must wait for the water. The Water Team and student interns also reviewed the system and tested water quality at various points on it. As some tests revealed very low levels of chlorine in the water, the Water Team recommended that the community increase the amount of chlorine in the chlorination tank from 7.0 oz. to 10 oz.

 

Project Photos

 

Visit Other Programs in El Retiro

Global Brigades strives to implement a model of Holistic Development in communities through a system of collectively implementing health, economic, and education initiatives to strategically meet a community's development goals. Learn more about the other programs being implemented in El Retiro:

Medical Dental CHW Engineering  Microfinance Public Health  Business Architecture