BRIDGING SCIENCE AND POLICY TO ENHANCE WATER SECURITY IN AFRICA AND THE AMERICAS

1. BRIDGING SCIENCE AND POLICY TO ENHANCE WATER SECURITY
IN AFRICA AND THE AMERICAS
INTERAMERICAN NETWORK OF ACADEMIES OF SCIENCE (IANAS)
&
NETWORK OF AFRICAN ACADEMIES OF SCIENCE (NASAC)

2. URBAN WATER in tHE AMERICAS
New Publication with Participation of 20 countries
In the Americas
Water PROGRAM
INTER-AMERICAN NETWORK OF ACADEMIES OF SCIENCES
Science Academies working together to promote science and
technology for development, prosperity and equity in the Americas

3. Chapters of Urban Water of
20 countries
• Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia,
Venezuela, Uruguay, Peru, Panamá, Costa Rica,
Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala,
Grenada, Dominican Republic, Cuba, México,
USA and Canada.
North America
Caribbean
 Mexico
 Central America
 South America

4. INTER-AMERICAN NETWORK OF ACADEMIES OF SCIENCES
Science Academies working together to promote science and
technology for development, prosperity and equity in the Americas
• Participation of 93 authors all professionals in
water sciences with different specialties

5. Editorial Committee
• Katherine Vammen -Nicaragua
• Gabriel Roldán-Colombia
• Claudia Campuzano-Colombia
• Ernesto González-Venezuela
• María Luisa Torregrosa-México
• Hugo Hidalgo-Costa Rica

6. Support for Publication
Urban Waters in the Americas

7. Topics of Chapters
• Water sources and problems caused by the
urbanization process
• Water supply services in urban areas
• Treatment of wastewater in urban areas
• Water and health in cities
• Variability and change in climate and consequent
influence on water resources in cities.
• Special themes according to focus of interest of
experts in focal point countries, Model Solutions

8. Percentage of urban population
UNHABITAT 2010
Region 2010 2050
World 51 70
More developed 75 86
North America 82 90
Europe 73 84
Less developed 45 67
Latin America 79 89
Asia 43 66
Africa 40 62
Developing countries
are projected to have
urban growth rates
roughly double those of
OECD countries
between 2005-2030
Jiménez, 2011

9. Urbanization of Buenos Aires

11. Origin of urban areas
Water has always played a determining roll in the formation of
cities being both a source for use of the population for
consume but also for deposition of wastes. Chapter Uruguay
The structural crisis begins in the decade of the 1960’s (after many
decades of growth) with the irregular increase in sectors without
services occupying the peripheral zones of urban areas when the
capacity for public investment was strongly reduced causing
problems associated with inadequate infrastructure, problems with
the construction of new works and the failure to integrate water in
the design of integral urban solutions.

12. Most Prominent Problems found in
urban areas with water resources
Water sources and problems caused by the urbanization
process
Factors associated with urbanization such as bad management
of solid wastes, absence or not sufficient distribution of
drainage systems for storm water, absence of appropriate
watershed management surrounding urban centers affecting
ground and surface waters and contamination due to deficient
infrastructure of sanitation and drainage.

13. Most Prominent Problems found in urban
areas with water resources
Water supply services in urban areas
The coverage in urban areas in the great majority of
urban areas of the Americas is > 95%.
There are problems with continuity of services which can
cause health problems as domestic water must be stored
in containers which can convert into media for vectors
such as mosquitos.
Ruptures in the distribution system in most cities of Latin
America and lack of renovations.

14. Problems with Continuity of Access to Water
Example of Managua, Nicaragua

15. Most Prominent Problems found in
urban areas with water resources
Water supply services in urban areas
All cities of South America, Central America and
Caribbean Islands are affected by the informal growth of
periurban areas which have little or no water coverage or
sanitation. Usually caused by migration from rural areas.
These are the areas with highest rate of water borne
diseases and contamination of irregular water sources.
Failure to control illegal connections.

16. Most Prominent Problems found in urban
areas with water resources
Treatment of wastewater in urban areas
Latin-American countries are not all on track to reach the
Millennium Development Goals for sanitation. The Central
American countries studied have a sanitation coverage of 63 to
95%. South America from 57 to 100%.
Source:Improved Sanitation according to Progress on Drinking
Water and Sanitation Update 2014, WHO, UNICEF.
Nota:
Improved sanitation coverage does not always mean that
contamination does not occur to water sources. Case of
Dominican Republic with vertical septic tanks and Central
America with massive use of septic tanks in new urbanizations
which contaminant groundwater used for human consume.

17. Use of Drinking Water Sources and Sanitation Facilities
% Population in 2012
Urban
population
%
Country Improved
Sanitation
%
Use of
Improved
Drinking
Water Sources
%
Use of Piped
on Premises
%
Central America
65 Costa Rica 95 100 100
65 El Salvador 80 95 86
50 Guatemala 88 99 98
53 Honduras 85 98 97
58 Nicaragua 63 98 89
76 Panama 80 97 96
Mexico
78 Mexico 87 96 95
South America
93 Argentina, 97 99 99
67 Bolivia 57 96 95
85 Brazil 87 100 97
89 Chile 100 100 100
76 Colombia 85 97 94
78 Peru 81 91 87
93 Uruguay 96 100 100
94 Venezuela 93 (year 2000) 94 (year 2000) 89 (year 2000)
Caribbean
75 Cuba 94 96 83
39 Grenada
70 Dominican
Republic
86 82 74
Latin America and the
Caribbean has highest
drinking water
coverage of
developing world
Source:
Progress on
Drinking Water
and Sanitation
2014 Update
UNICEF,
WHO

18. Most Prominent Problems found in
urban areas with water resources
Treatment of wastewater in urban areas
• In South America, the coverage of sewage system is around 80%
in most countries but a high percentage of waste waters are
discharged into rivers and the ocean without treatment. It is a
fact that 15% of waste waters do no receive any primary
treatment.
• In Central America equally waste waters from Oxidation
Lagoons treating domestic waste waters are discharged to
surface water bodies which undergo strong eutrophication and
lose water quality for human consumption. In most countries
today exist many efforts to increase the coverage of sewage
systems in cities. Example: In the city of Managua, Nicaragua a
large treatment plant was installed in 2009 which has greatly
improved environmental sanitation of the city.

19. Most Prominent Problems found in
urban areas with water resources
Water and health in cities
• In most countries water transmitted diseases are reported with
higher register of cases in the most underdeveloped parts of the
cities dominantly in peripheral poor population. Acute diarrhea
disease and those caused by vectors such as mosquitos, Malaria
and Dengue and recently Chikungunya. Also health problems
observed due to heavy metals in water from agriculture, industry
and natural sources. o mention Arsenic, Mercury and others.
• In the last decade there has been an improvement in both Latin
America and Caribbean countries in cities due to better access to
water and increasing installation of sanitation. Also progress in
development of public health surveillance systems

20. Outbreaks of Dengue in Cities
of Latin America
Dengue in Capital City of Venezuela
Caracas
8000
7000
6000
5000
4000
3000
2000
1000
0
2
0
0
0
2
0
0
1
2
0
0
2
Casos de dengue en la ciudad de Managua,
2
0
0
3
2
0
0
4
2000-2012
2
0
0
5
2
0
0
6
2
0
0
7
2
0
0
8
2
0
0
9
2
0
1
0
2
0
1
1
2
0
1
2
Casos de dengue
Años
Casos de Dengue (N° Absolutos)
Dengue in Capital City of Nicaragua
Managua
Analysis in cities: Outbreaks in part for
necessity to store water domestically due to
failure of continuity of access to water and appearance
of different serotypes of virus. Cases concentrated
in periurban areas and a proximity to surface waters
or urban open canal systems.

21. Most Prominent Problems found in
urban areas with water resources
Variability and change in climate and consequent
influence on water resources in cities.
Floods in cities of Argentina

22. Variability and change in climate and consequent
influence on water resources in cities.
Cities under pressure due to extreme
events of
drought and floods.
Cities are more vulnerable to extreme climate events due to
failures in planning of growth and extension, lack of
modernization of water distribution systems as well as
development of drainage systems adapted to intense
precipitation events.
All countries have reported changes in precipitation patterns
accompanied by changes in soil use in surrounding urban
watersheds, deforestation which cause increase in erosion
bringing heavier sedimentation into cities.

23. Results of Climate Change
study of Costa Rica for Central America.
In San José, Costa Rica and in Tegucigalpa, Honduras observed
reductions in surface runoff since the 1980´s associated with
higher evapotranspiration rates due to gradual increase in
temperatures. Projections of climate change: Central America
will have less precipitation in the future especially problematic in
the northern part where agriculture is dominant.
%
%
%
%
%
Panamá
%
Managua
San José
Guatemala
Tegucigalpa
San Salvador
SIMBOLOGIA
Arbustales de coníferas
Arbustales de latifoliadas
Arbustales mixtos
Areas con escasa vegetación
Arrecifes coralinos
Bosques decíduos de latifoliadas
Bosques manglares
Bosques semidecíduos de latifoliadas
Bosques semidecíduos mixtos
Bosques siempreverdes de coníferas
Bosques siempreverdes y semisiempreverdes de latifoliadas
Bosques siempreverdes y semisiempreverdes mixtos
Cuerpos de agua
Otros
Pantanos y humedales
Páramos
Plantaciones forestales
Sabanas
Sin datos
Sistemas agropecuarios
Sistemas productivos acuáticos (camaroneras, salineras)
Urbano
Dominance of Agriculture in Central America

24. Drought
Example: Dominican Republic
• Drought has caused a severe crisis in provision of
potable water which has forced authorities to ration
water use for irrigation and give priority to human
consumption. This has also caused inter-municipal
conflicts for access to the scarce available water.

25. Problems with Drainage System in Urban
Areas under High Precipitations
Example:Montevideo, Uruguay
Due to several factors:
• Insufficient quantity of drainage collector canals causing
floods in streets and houses. Design of drainage system from
the 1950´s not absorbing quantity of water.
• Increase in impermeability of soils in watersheds causes
increase in input flow to cities
• Frequent floods due to overflow
of urban ditches close to housing.
• High levels of Río de la Plata.

26. Planning for better Drainage Systems in Cities
Example of Montivideo, Uruguay
From different sources of information, urban census and other
sources, elaboration of maps to project areas of conflicts which
identify problems of storm water, interaction with other
subsystems and complementary proposals.

27. Most Prominent Problems found in
urban areas with water resources
Other Factors mentioned in book
Institutional and Legal: In most countries there are
existing Water Authorities and specific legislation for
water management and supervision. Some countries
mentioned that the effectiveness of the institutions is
not yet adequate and the laws are not being enforced.

28. Different Characteristics by Region
• South America has dominantly water sources from surface
waters at the present and dams which suffer from
eutrophication processes.
• Central America has dominantly water sources from
groundwater which is under impact from climate change
(lowering of water table levels) and contamination from
pesticides and hydrocarbons.

29. United States of America
• “The urban water problems of the United States are problems
of maintenance and renewal of water systems, continuing
deterioration of source water quality and water scarcity which
impedes the development of new supplies to support urban
growth. These problems are technological, institutional and
political. “
• “Although current water supplies are largely adequate and
waterborne illness is quite rare, the U.S. is a good example of
the “water paradox of developed nations” because without
substantial new, innovative and costly efforts its urban water
supply systems will be in jeopardy. “
• “Demand management strategies include actions to manage
water consumption more carefully, reduce wastage and
maintain levels of reliability”
• Henry Vaux, Chapter USA

30. Principal Conclusions and Recommendations
• Assure better economic measures that benefit investment programs for water
and sanitation. And also reform of drainage systems in cities.
• Strengthen regulation and control in water services.
• Improve capacities for planning, design and installation of water services in
cities. Better infrastructure to deal with climate change in urban areas both
flooding, droughts and contaminant control.
• Strengthen and amplify monitoring of water quality which include new
contaminants.
• Improve education and technical capacity for water sanitation and hygiene in all
levels (community, city and district government levels, profesionals working in
watershed management and water services).
• “The national government needs to authorize and provide funding support for
programs of evaluation and regulation of contaminants and potential
contaminants. Failure to accomplish this task will adversely impact both the
safety and reliability of the urban water supplies in the future.” USA

31. Principal Conclusions and Recommendations
• Prepare risk evaluations and alert systems to confront
problems: climate change events, water quality problems,
water access, sanitation and health supervision to
diminish vulnerability of population.
• Strengthen Institutional Water Authorities and
Enforcement of Water Laws to improve effectiveness. In
some countries legal reform of water legislation.
• Improve Water Management in Watersheds surrounding
urban areas.
• Improve sanitation systems which assure no further
contamination of water resources.
• Establish reuse of waste waters that involve water quality
monitoring for adequate use. Especially important in
adaptation for climate change impacts.