Peru

Water safety and security

Improved agricultural productivity can enhance livelihoods, but unsustainable approaches can contaminate water sources and create health problems. Through this project, researchers examined water security in Lamud, a district in the province of Luya. In a one-day workshop, community, health and education representatives joined other provincial and municipal groups to share information on water safety, quality, collection and storage practices, as well as practices for human consumption and agricultural use.

Collectively the groups identified seven water security issues: the need for, and access to, sustainable water resources; inadequate infrastructure for irrigation; inadequate infrastructure, treatment, distribution, management and monitoring of water for human consumption; deforestation; lack of awareness among the general population and authorities regarding responsibility for sustainability of natural resources; contamination of water supplies; and insufficient training of water personnel in the areas of water treatment, management and monitoring.

Peggy MacLeod says the results will serve as the foundation for a comprehensive mapping of community needs and support a sustainable plan for water security. A 2009 LACREG grant enabled the University of Saskatchewan to build local capacity for integrated water resource management in indigenous communities in the Ancash region of Peru.