Colorado State Students

Bringing Water Home

Published December 2007

For the past two years, students in CSU’s chapter of the national Engineers Without Borders program have been developing better water systems for two small villages in El Salvador.

Project Multimedia

For generations, women and children in El Chilé have carried water home - 55 pounds at a time - from a cistern in a ravine below the village.

Video: Walking Water Home (Windows streaming media)

Feature article: Creating Wellsprings in El Salvador (PDF)

Photo gallery: El Salvador – August 2007

El Chilé and La Laguneta, sister villages perched on the flank of the inactive San Vicente volcano, experience severe water shortages six months out of the year. When water is scarce, it is difficult, if not impossible, for residents to practice hygiene, and that increases illness in young and old alike. Additionally, even when water is available, transporting it daily to the villages consumes a great deal of time and energy.

Bringing water to El Chilé

While work in La Laguneta has concentrated on drilling more wells and improving rooftop catchments, most of the effort in El Chilé has gone into delivering cleaner water to the center of town.

During the group's most recent trip, in August 2007, the pipeline project in El Chile was completed. Senior civil engineering student Eric Hettler, CSU’s current Engineers Without Borders president who has been active in the El Salvador project, says, "Our work may be done in some places, but we’ll keep sending people to check on things. Follow-up is crucial."

Past projects included work in Tanzania, India, Nepal, and Brazil, Hettler says, and a similar water project is in the works for San Antonio Abad in El Salvador.

El Salvador photo gallery – August 2007

Thanks to CSU engineering students and other volunteers, future generations won’t have to carry water from long distances.

Ryan Horn and Christine Sednek, civil and environmental engineeing students, do survey work for the project in El Chile.

Villagers and visitors alike, including Colorado State Magazine editor Paul Miller (at right in green shirt), worked together to prepare the site for water pipelines.

Student engineer Gabe Miller and a local plumber install brass taps in El Chile.

Children watch as the first delivery of water pours from the new taps.

Video producer Greg O'Malia enjoys time with local children.