Water Purification

Tap water in Guatemala must be treated before drinking in order to avoid severe diarrhea. In the countryside, that means boiling it. Firewood is expensive, though, and many families fail to boil their water long enough. As a result, many of the children in our rural program villages are sick almost continually.

Ceramic pot filters are one of the most effective means of household water treatment in the developing world. We have identified Ecofiltro, a Guatemalan company, that makes filtration systems locally. The key to this type of project is to make it sustainable and self-perpetuating. EcoFiltro has a good plan in that respect, and they have staff on the ground full time in Guatemala.

Filter Recipient Selection Criteria

There is no free access to potable water in our program villages, so all local families are on the same level in this respect.  Once donations have been identified, Pura Vida village representatives compile a list of all families wanting a filter. 

Prospective filter recipient households:
  • Are allowed a maximum of one filter
  • Must be willing to pay a small amount ($3) monthly into a community fund.  After 8 months of payments, the accumulated funds are sufficient to purchase a replacement clay insert when needed.  This model gives the recipients a sense of ownership, and frees them from the expectation that the original donors will maintain their filters into the future. An important part of the Pura Vida mission is to avoid creating dependencies.
  • May or may not be part of the Pura Vida scholarship program (Our local staff has discovered that not all scholarship households are interested in the filter at this time.)

Once recipients have been identified and funds raised, Ecofiltro goes to the villages to distribute the filters to all households on the list.  Ecofiltro also sets up "water boards" to collect the monthly fees to fund the replacement inserts. Pura Vida work groups are often on hand to witness the distribution.  We distributed 40 filters in Pocohil in June, 2014 as a trial run [ see photos ]. We are now fundraising for more filters to distribute to each of our 9 program villages.

Your donation will help provide potable water in rural Guatemala.