Year End Update – December 28, 2015

The last part of 2015 has been busy with many activities. 

Since we last posted we have completed the 19 cisterns in Ex-Hacienda de Pena Blanca and 2 in San Lorenzo. Alejandro and I traveled there many times during the construction phase taking with us the new CEDESA technician; Abel. 

Abel is doing a great job & by going with him we were able to demonstrate many of the details in cistern construction. In the course of this project, we made some good modifications to how we install the hatch. 

Alejandro & I went to the final celebration which was a wonderful event with folkloric dances &, as always, a lot of good food.

As well, we have spent a lot of time in Vivienda in the last 2 months working on 5 cisterns needing repair. This has been a good experience & was needed to get us started on the new Repair & Maintenance booklet that we will produce & hand out to new families in 2016. 

Robert Ash of MAPEI went with us one day & his expertise in cement construction & waterproofing was invaluable. We took Abel with us to learn more about this part of the cistern projects.

We have been doing a lot of cistern inspections to build a database of the cisterns constructed … 751 now! … & to learn more about how cisterns hold up over time. The answer to that question is; very well. 

Did you know that a leaking faucet dripping one drop every second will result in the loss of 50,000 liters of water a year? That is equivalent to more than four full cisterns of precious rainwater! 

Overall, our observation is that families take very good care of their cisterns. They should because they worked very hard to build them.

Since August I have been to 2 COCIRA meetings incl. a “grand encuentro” where we had representatives come down from UCCANG to join us. I have been to 2 UCCANG meetings in Dolores Hidalgo. 

UCCANG are an impressive group of campesinos. This organization was started 35 years ago & our local COCIRA organization was founded using them as there model.

We have had a wonderful year in water harvesting. We have built 108 cisterns in 7 communities. We are nearing the end of our current grant & we have now made an application with the Rotary Foundation for another 314 cisterns! 

There are 10 Rotary Clubs, 8 Rotary Districts & 3 foundations participating in our next grant. Lotus foundation continues to be a major supporter of our work & they have generously donated US$10,000 to the next project. San Miguel Community Foundation has once again stepped up & donated another US$7000 to our next water harvesting project. It is especially rewarding when Rotary Clubs & Rotary Friends continue to come back & involve themselves in multiple projects with us.

Thank you everyone for your support & encouragement. 

Particular thanks to Alejandro & Beatriz, my compadres in the water harvesting team, & thank you Laura Stewart for always being there to help me, advise me, & calm me. It’s not an easy job.

Best wishes for a new year with lots of rain! J

Lee Carter

Rotary San Miguel Midday

Global Grant Project Update August 2015

We have been very busy since our last post in July. 

In early August, there was a meeting of COCIRA in the community of Boca de Canada. It is a stunningly beautiful place in San Miguel. 

COCIRA has really become a strong organization and there is now a council of Directors who are anxious to move the group forward in many areas in addition to water harvesting. There are 12 Directors, a representative from 12 different communities. They are taking on the task of inspecting and evaluating all of the cisterns that have been constructed since 2009 when Laura Stewart began this long and enjoyable journey.

Boca de Canada is a new community with water problems. They have been attending COCIRA and other community meetings for several months now. New communities coming for the first time were Tlaxcalilla (no water whatsoever), Saltrillo (contaminated water and wanting dry toilets) and Begona de Progreso (contaminated water). Now they have the information necessary to go back to their communities and discuss the possibility of joining COCIRA and seeking various resources that come from being part of COCIRA and having a relationship with CEDESA. In addition to Rotary funded water projects, backyard vegetable gardens, health clinics using medicinal plants, apicultura (beekeeping) and dry toilets are among the many things that can be accomplished on a community level when the inhabitants come to gather to work in teams for the betterment of all.

Mago attended this meeting as the CEDESA representative as Chela has been sidelined with a knee problem. Mayra, Carolina and Hilaria came as promoters in sub-regions that have been set up to better serve the San Miguel municipality. Lee attended as Rotary’s representative.

Dates were established during the meeting to do “inspection and evaluation” of the Presa Allende project and to finish up the final inspections at Alonso Yanez and Lindero. The closing ceremony for Presa Allende was set for 22^nd of August.

In August Mago traveled to Ex-Hacienda de Pena Blanca to finalize the organization and teams for this second phase project. There are 19 families participating and we are also supplying two 1,100 liter tinacos to capture rainwater at the houses of two much older persons who are not able to do the work necessary to construct the 12,000 ferro-cement cisterns. Benigno, the master cistern builder from CEDESA, will be the technical representative on this project and Abel is being trained to become the cistern technician for the San Miguel area.

Hierro Comercial delivered the materials for the pilot cistern in Ex-Hacienda de Pena Blanca for  two cisterns in San Lorenzo on August 22^nd and construction began on August 24^th. Lee delivered the plywood and took the "nipples" back to Eric’s so the heavy wire reinforcing could be welded onto the galvanized parts that penetrate the cistern walls. Alejandro arranged with the department of social development of the municipality to make water truck deliveries each week of the project as there is no water in XHPB to even mix the cement.

As planned above, on August 22nd we had our closing celebration in Presa Allende with more than 80 persons in attendance. Ivar, Alejandro and Lee went from Rotary. Chela’s knee is improving and she attended with Meche and another CEDESA visitor. 

On Aug 25^th Alejandro and Lee went back to San Lorenzo and XHPB to deliver the reinforced "nipples" for the pilot cistern. This was a great opportunity to talk at length with Benigno about the construction process and the techniques and decisions the technical rep. needs to make in regards to how and where cisterns are located.

On Aug 27, Holly and Lee went to CEDESA HQ in Dolores Hidalgo to review with Chela the new education program that will be added to our next grant. Welcome back Holly! The eight modules were reviewed and we had time to talk about how this can be implemented by having promoter and then later COCIRA and UCCANG workshops to build enthusiasm for the program. Holly will be working hard with Rotary to develop the modules and copious auxiliary materials to distribute in the communities where we will be working.

On Aug 28th all of the new Presa Allende cisterns were inspected by a team of COCIRA representatives, Alejandro, Beatriz and Lee of Rotary and Meche of Cedesa . The new inspection program appears to be a very valuable activity as it gives us an opportunity to meet individually with every new cistern owner to reinforce the importance of maintenance activities and disinfection of the collected water. We are finding new ways to improve the projects overall and where to avoid problems.

  

On Aug 31, Alejandro, Beatriz and Lee went to see the progress in San Lorenzo where we were served a delicious breakfast of atole and gorditas. Abel from CEDESA went along with us and I was impressed that he is very thoughtful and dedicated to the success of the two current cistern projects. From San Lorenzo we went on to XHPB to check on the completed pilot cistern and to see where the next cisterns would be located. Because this community has so few construction workers (too far from San Miguel) we also needed to purchase some basic tools to lend to the project.

On Sept 1, Lee traveled back to XHPB to deliver the remainder of the tools needed and also the reinforced "nipples" needed for that week’s construction. This is the first project that we have undertaken since Saul left CEDESA (to develop his personal business). It has really been a little difficult because Saul used to take care of so many little details (taking and returning "nipples", for instance). He also had the "luxury" of having a CEDESA truck to be able to accomplish the many errands. CEDESA does not have a truck that can be used by Abel at this time. It has fallen on Rotary’s shoulders to do all of this detail work. Whereas I am happy to have a chance to work on and learn about every little detail, it is not practical that we do this for all future projects. Lee has been discussing with Chela (CEDESA) and our project partners for the next project of obtaining some additional grant money so that a truck can be available to the CEDESA workers in the San Miguel region. Saul used to be the promoter, coordinator, technician and all-around boy Friday for these projects. Moving forth and having different persons filling the different roles is requiring that we establish clear communication systems and cooperation to be able to operate efficiently. This mini-project is proceeding reasonably well - we are on a steep learning curve.

It was a busy month and I have not even reported it all!

Submitted by Lee Carter, Rotary San Miguel Midday, September 7, 2015.

Closing Celebration Alonso Yanez and Lindero July 23, 2015

Today Beatriz Sauceda and I traveled to Alonso Yanez and Lindero to attend the final celebration for this 38 cistern project. We also took a young woman named Karen with us who is photo journalist. She also makes short

documentaries and is interested in documenting some of our work here in San Miguel.

We arrived to a very large crowd of over 70 adults and many many children. We had visiting delegations from Boca de la Canada, Presa Allende, Cienega de Juana Ruiz, and Coralejos. When we arrived the food was already spread out in several locations and people were having their "almuerzo" - late breakfast.

Mayra and Carolina were attending the event in the role of CEDESA promoters. Chela unfortunately could not come because she is having problems with her knee. We had a brief program where the community groups introduced themselves and I said a few words about the cistern program and what a pleasure it was to work in a sucha a beautiful community and with people who were willing to work so hard to bring "agua de calidad" (quality water) to their families. 

You may remember that these communities have 4.95 mg/litre of fluoride in their water - a gravely serious situation (WHO maximum recommended level is 1.5mg/l) It was nice to see that they really "get it" about the dangers of the fluoride and there is already an even larger group forming for a future rainwater harvesting project. 

We also discussed the importance of staying involved with COCIRA and CEDESA to take advantage of other programs such as back yard gardening, health clinics and bee keeping. Beatriz spoke elegantly about the power of women in changing their lives, and their family's lives, through their organizing and working in teams. It is the women who take on the cistern building work and they are approx 95% of the participants in our projects.

After an introduction of the visitors from other communities, project participants from both Alonso Yanez and Lindero spoke about the process and work that went into the cistern project. The municipal delegate spoke briefly about the importance of this project and the issue of high fluoride levels in their community. He encouraged everyone to become more conscious of the dangers of the well water, especially for children, and the importance of gestating a next phase of cisterns in their community.

After our meeting, a huge meal was spread out including moles, green and red pozole, huaraches, quesadillas and more. Delicious! Normally we do not know how many children attend our events but today was different. An ice cream truck was passing by and Beatriz flagged it down announcing that she intended to buy an ice cream cone for each child there. There were eighty ice cream cones served!

It is days like these that remind us all of why we love working in rainwater harvesting so much!

Submitted by Lee Carter
Rotary San Miguel Midday

Planning Next Grant and a visit to Ojo de Zarco

July 1, 2015

Today I met with Chela Martinez, Director of CEDESA and Cece, coordinator of CEDESA promotors. We discussed in depth future plans for water harvesting within the Independence Aquifer.

Particularly we were able to lay out plans for who will be the promotor for various micro-regions of COCIRA and UNCANG. We will be submitting a new Rotary Foundation Global Grant request in August that includes a robust education program, “water days” in the communities, and the construction of the next 250 to 300 cisterns. I am pleased how the additional education program can be integrated into our community development and organization process.

COCIRA, the regional water council of communities in the San Miguel area, and UNCANG, the regional water council in the northern part of the aquifer, will be taking on the responsibility of evaluating and inspecting all cisterns between the end of the construction period and the final celebration. They will administer a survey that will give us specific information to be used to improve future projects and to achieve that critical last 5% in assuring that we finish each mini-project with 100% of the water harvesting systems fully functional. 

We also discussed leaving a small inventory of cistern parts and repair materials in communities that stay involved with COCIRA and UNCANG so that small problems can be immediately attended to before they develop into bigger problems.

The COCIRA/UNCANG groups will also returning to visit each of the 725 cisterns we have constructed since 2009. This is an intermediate term program that will take 12 to 18 months to complete. We want to assure continual monitoring and maintenance as to have the maximum number of functional water harvesting systems possible.

I look forward to receiving the surveys so that we can guide beneficiaries to do the best maintenance possible and maximize the quality of their drinking and cooking water. This work will lead to even better success in our new projects.

After lunch, Chela and I went to our third community organizational meeting in Ojo de Zarco and Purisima de Ojo de Zarco. Eighty-five percent (85%) of the community turned out for this meeting.

There were 54 families stating their interest in joining together for a project. We explained the process of what they must do to become eligible for the Rotary/CEDESA resources. They learned of the water harvesting program from some families in Los Torres where there have been four phases of cistern projects resulting in almost 100 cisterns in that community. It was agreed that the next step would be all potential families willing to do the work to earn cistern resources would meet in Los Torres on July 22 to see the cisterns at work and talk with past participants about the work necessary to have a successful project. It is a great pleasure to travel to these communities with Chela who now has 43 years of experience in community development work.

Submitted by Lee Carter, Rotary San Miguel Miday

Inspections and Monitoring GG1422619

We have gotten off to a good start in our new monitoring and evaluation program. The COCIRA council is taking this work on as their responsibility. They will be inspecting every cistern constructed during this grant and will be administering a survey as well as noting the GPS coordinates of each cistern. 

We are finding that there is a common set of problems that we can discover soon after construction: leaks in the galvanized plumbing, confusion in connecting the gutter system to the cistern, leaks in the cold joint at the base, leaks where the galvanized nipples penetrate the cistern, no first flush mechanism installed. None of these problems, individually, seem persistent, but when they are all taken together as a group, it is clear that early intervention on our part will improve the success of the project ie ultimately, our work monitoring will lead to minor tweaks to the construction process that will lead  overall to an improved process.

From our inspections thus far, we have been generating a list of “recurring problems” with appropriate solutions to those problems.. This is being developed into a “Use and Maintenance Manual” that we intend to publish and distribute to all project beneficiaries later in the summer or early in the fall. We are seeking simple solutions using materials commonly available in each community when possible. For problems of a more serious nature that would render a system completely dysfunctional, we are meeting with experts to look for the appropriate repair techniques and materials for those relatively rare cases. 

One possibility being discussed is placing about US$100 worth of commonly needed materials and repair parts with the COCIRA council member in each community to have an inventory of immediately available repair parts. The thought is that the council member would collect the cost of the materials as they are dispensed and then use that to replenish the inventory to maintain a perpetual supply.  

We are also considering returning to each community from this project to have a “Water Day” where we can individually consult on any problems and their solutions, where we can talk more about water safety and the benefits of using bio-contamination disinfection methods to improve water quality. We believe the opportunity for additional training and education will enhance the sustainability of these projects.

In addition to the evaluation of the cisterns built during this grant, the COCIRA council has indicated they are willing to go back to visit and inspect all cisterns constructed since 2009 – ie approx 725 cisterns in total. Collecting this data and using it to improve future projects will lead to better utilization of our future grant funds. Knowledge is power.

Submitted by Lee Carter, Rotary San Miguel Midday

Closing Ceremony Vivienda de Abajo

Yesterday we celebrated the completion of 10 cisterns in Vivienda de Abajo. Nine cisterns were in family homes and one was at the secondary school. This is the last cistern that we plan to build in a public space until we have a program in place to ensure maintenance and proper use. The development process for building a “public” cistern that must be maintained by a group or committee is very different than the process of building privately owned cisterns.

Attending were 15 families from Vivienda that are still participating in COCIRA. These persons are involved in other CEDESA promoted projects such as backyard gardening, health clinics & home health training, and bee keeping. Overall there were about 40 persons in attendance and a wonderful lunch (especially wonderful green mole) was served. 

New members to COCIRA seeking Rotary resources were in attendance from Nombre de Dios, San Lorenzo, Boca de Canada and Ex-Hacienda de Pena Blanca.

Chela, Mayra, Saul and Mago were representing CEDESA. Lee Carter was there from Rotary San Miguel Midday. As this was Saul’s last official day as a CEDESA promotor, he cut the inaugural ribbon.

It is interesting to see how some projects go better than others, but I still am not sure how to predict a project’s outcome. This project is one of the best we have had during this grant. All of the cisterns are well constructed, connected and in good service. On the other hand, we still need to go back and do remedial work on about one-half of the cisterns in Banda. I will be talking with CEDESA about sending a technical representative to Banda in the next several weeks to finish up that project so that we finish there with 100% of the collection systems functional and collecting the summer rains. We have determined that having a good and responsible albanil (experienced construction worker) as a part of the work group is very important.

Submitted by Lee Carter, Rotary San Miguel Midday

COCIRA MEETING

June 4, 2015 – Presa Allende

COCIRA (Consejo Ciudadano Rural de Agua  - the regional water council for San Miguel de Allende), met today in the community building at Presa Allende. There were approximately 60 of us plus a “big-ole-bunch” of kids to start the meeting to at 10 am. By the time we finished at 3:30 pm, after a nice lunch hosted by Presa Allende, that group had grown to about 75 and many more kids. Meetings always seem to grow to the max just before we break for lunch.

Communities in attendance were: Alonso Yañez, Lindero, La Ciénega, Juan Gonzalez, Montecillo de Nieto, Boca de Canadá, Ex-Hacienda de Pena Blanca, Tierra Blanca, La Banda, Vivienda Abajo, San Lorenzo, Presa Allende, and Correlejos. Also in attendance was Lee Carter from Rotary San Miguel and Chela, Saul, Mayra, Mago and Carolina from CEDESA.

The order of the day was set to discuss:

1.       Water Issues in General

2.       Closing Celebrations for Vivienda, Alonso Yanez and Lindero

3.       Communities in waiting: Ex-Hacienda de Pena Blanca (14), Nombre de Dios (6), Boca de Canada (more than 35), and San Lorenzo (2).

4.       Anniversary Celebration at CEDESA on June 19 and 20 to celebrate 50 years of service to the communities!

5.       Review a video about the Sierra Norte de Puebla about community actions taken by the indigenous people of that region to stop strip mining, fracking and the construction of hydro-electric dams.

6.        Present the new Consejo of COCIRA (governing board)

7.       Discuss health issues and CEDESA programs to provide training in interested communities.

The future work schedule is heavy with a number of meetings and events planned:

1.       June 13, 11 am, Lee to deliver cistern and community photos for the 50^th Anniversary amparo to Mayra at Presa Allende Church.

2.       June 16, COCIRA counsel and Lee to go to Alonso Yanez and Lindero to do a final inspection and evaluation of that mini-project. Meet at the highway entrance to Alonso Yanez at 10 am.

3.       June 19 and 20. Attend 50^th Anniversary Celebration at CEDESA

4.       June 26, 10:30 am, Lee and Chela to visit San Lorenzo to do a profile of the two families asking for cistern resources in that community

5.       June 26, 12 noon, Closing Ceremony for Vivienda at the house of Louisa.

6.       July 16, 10 am, Meeting of the Counsel of COCIRA at the Salon de Lecturas en Cienega Juan Ruiz

7.       July 23, 12 noon, Closing Ceremony for Alonso Yanez and Lindero at the Casa de Lecturas.

8.       July 28, 10 am, Organizational meeting for the community of Boca de Canada. Chela, Lee, Mayra, and Carolina to attend.

So much for having a leisurely summer before beginning new projects in the fall! It was decided that we will use the rest of the cistern construction funds for the San Miguel de Allende community over the summer. The plan is to construct 14 in Ex-Hacienda de Pena Blanca, 2 in San Lorenzo and 6 in Nombre de Dios.

The COCIRA counsel proposed to take the responsibility of visiting every community after a Project is completed and before the final celebration to do a final inspection, evaluation and monitoring of the Project. This could be an excellent way for us to improve each project while building a complete database with all of the cisterns constructed by CEDESA and Rotary since 2008. At the end of the summer we will have completed a total of 125 cisterns from the current global grant bringing the grand total to about 750 in 29 different San Miguel communities. There will be more discussion with the COCIRA council on how best to return to all previous communities so that we will have a complete picture of all of the work done since the water harvesting project began in 2009 at Los Torres. Mayra told me that she and Benigno (CEDESA) visited many communities already last summer. She and I will review the information she already has and make a plan how to accomplish this task. This is likely more appropriate than trying to use college students doing their social service to evaluate the cistern projects.

Lee reported that Rotary San Miguel Midday has already begun seeking resources for the winter of 2015 and the year 2016 in all communities lying within the Cuenca de Independencia. This will include San Felipe, Dolores Hidalgo, San Diego Union, San Luis de la Paz and San Miguel de Allende. We will begin organizing the community of Boca de Canada over the summer so that they will be ready by the fall when grant funds become available.

Saul Juarez of CEDESA announced at the end of the meeting that he will stop working as a promotor for CEDESA at the end of June to pursue personal goals and projects. Everyone is sorry to see Saul retire as a promotor, but he will still be involved as a citizen and member of COCIRA. From the standpoint of Rotary, we will miss Saul very much and we wish him the best in the future. Saul has been the backbone of our work in San Miguel since 2010 and has contributed significantly to the success of our many projects. There are other CEDESA promotors that can do the work of organizing and coordinating communities but we will need to train a new technical promotor to oversee construction. Until that is done Benigno who generally works in the northern part of CEDESA’s territory will be available to us.

Lee Carter

Rotary San Miguel Midday

June 4, 2015