Programs / Water / Communities / Los Huatales, Las Pilas, Tierras Cheles «

Los Huatales, Las Pilas, & Tierras Cheles

Los Huatales, Las Pilas, and Tierras Cheles are communities in the municipality

of Amapala in the department of Valle in southern Honduras. There are roughly 600

people residing in 130 houses. Community members in the three communities

cannot obtain enough water to meet their basic needs, meaning that they must

forgo many basic hygiene and sanitation practices. Thus, common colds, skin

rashes, parasites, and diarrheal diseases plague community members. Moreover,

few homes have concrete floors, functioning latrines, adequate water storage, or

efficient stoves with chimneys, which further exacerbates health problems. The

closest health center is in Los Langes and Puerto Grande, which are about a 40

minute walk from the furthest houses. Several families rely on money sent back to

them from relatives who live abroad in places such as the United States and Mexico.

 

Los Huatales. Las Pilas, and Tierras Chele's Water Challenge

No centralized water system exists that provides access to all members of the three adjoining communities. In the largest community, Los Huatales, there are 5 public wells and 6 private wells in which the water is not purified nor regulated. Due to its proximity to the ocean, many of the wells contain salt water. Moreover, during the dry season, most of the wells run dry. When the water is not suitable or unavailable, community members must walk approximately 40 minutes to the nearest source in Los Langes. Most families fill one 5 gallon bucket per day at the most accessible water source and chlorinate the drinking water to treat it.

 

Water Solution for Los Huatales, Las Pilas, and Tierras Cheles

Water Brigaders from various universities will work in Los Huatales, Las Pilas,

Additional Information

General Community Profile

Water Project Profile

and Tierras Cheles throught the first half of 2016.  These volunteers will work

with community members to:
     •  Dig a large well at the primary school
     •  Build a 10,000 gallon chlorination tank, and two tanks of 5,000 gallons. 
     •  Dig approximately 10,000 meters of trench
     •  Install 10,000 meters of PVC piping and 654 meters of iron piping
     •  Connect 142 houses, 2 schools, and 3 churches to the water system

 

 To ensure the sustainability of the project, a new seven  member Water Council will be established and by Water  Brigades in addition to a Basic Sanitation Committee  also  trained by Water Brigades. To fund this project, a  partnership has been made with Foundation Miguel  Facussé, and the National Congress of Honduras.  Foundation Miguel Facussé will donate the funds for the  purchase of the well and for the construction and labor  of the pump. The National Congress of Honduras, has  also committed around 178,000 Lempiras (about                                                                                                $8,000) for the purchase of the pump. 

 

 

Engineering Brigades Chapters that Worked in Los Huatales,                            Las Pilas, and Tierras Cheles
Engineering Brigades Chapter	Month	Volunteers
Sustainable Development Interns	July 2014	4
Drexel University Engineering Brigades	March 2015	21
University of Rochester & Saint Louis University	January 2016	18
Penn State University	January 2016	10
Virginia Tech	January 2016	14
Boston University	January 2016	18
Dublin City University	January 2016	15
DHL Professional Brigades Tegucigalpa	January 2016	6
University of Victoria	February 2016	11

 

Current Status

Project Start!
Community members in Los Huatales, Las Pilas, and Tierras Cheles began project construction and Global Brigades started sending brigades on January 4, 2015. The project is still under construction, and we are hoping to finish in May of 2016.

 

 

Visit Other Programs in Los Huatales, Las Pilas, Tierras Cheles

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 Los Huatales, Las Pilas, and Tierras Cheles:

 Medical Dental  Engineering Community Health Workers Public Health Business