“Water is a resource that favors health, but the use of the vital contaminated liquid puts people’s lives at risk, we can find it in rivers, lakes, wells and even when it is potable”, Says the Ministry of Public Health and Social Assistance (MSPAS). According to studies carried out by the University of San Carlos de Guatemala, In the country 95% of rivers and lakes in the country are contaminated, As a consequence of this pollution there are repercussions on people’s health since they use water from these water sources.
This problem does not only affect the population in Guatemala, but it is a worldwide risk factor. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), “about one million people die every year due to diarrheal diseases contracted as a result of the unhealthiness of water, insufficient sanitation or poor hands. However, in most cases these diseases can be prevented.”
According to Virginia Mosquera, environmental engineer and water quality expert, In Guatemala, water quality depends on the place and the treatment it gives, Either the Municipality, Municipal Corporation or Private Entity, before entering the distribution network. “There are places in Guatemala where the water is slightly contaminated by fecal contamination while there are others where the levels are very high. But, as control is not carried out at the level of routine home taps it is better to generalize that it should not be taken from the tap without doing some kind of treatment at home,” Mosquera explains.
“Fecal pollution is the most common in water for human consumption in almost any water source,” says Mosquera.
In Guatemala, water is not reliable due to different reasons. First, unlike other countries, there is no treatment here to purify water with high standards. Many municipalities or suppliers of piped water Chore water and sometimes do not do so with a necessary routine or dose.
In addition, there is no adequate maintenance of water distribution networks to ensure that water is not contaminated in the route through the network and arrives clean to homes.
Risk of diseases
According to the Ministry of Health, pollution in water can cause diseases such as diarrhea, cholera, malaria, dysentery, hepatitis A and B, typhus, typhoid fever, and gastroenteritis, among others.
For that reason it is advisable to use safe water for consumption and not consume the water that comes out of the jet, since it is not reliable.
“Some populations do not have piped water, so they consume water that is not chlorinated and that is contaminated with human and animal feces, this can affect their health,” according to Mario Sum, of the Diseases Program transmitted by food and water of the MSPAS.
The term of safe water refers to that which has no germs or toxic substances and can be used to drink, wash food, cook, ice and wash your teeth.
Public health authorities recommend boiling water for five minutes and expect it to cool to use it. Another option is to consume bottled or chlorinated water to avoid diseases, or use water purifiers.
“Attention should be paid that in order for water to serve the water, it must reach the boiling point (which comes out bubbles) and not only is hot. If you do not reach that point, we do not kill bacteria and viruses. Like Mosquera suggests.