​Just Water Allocation in the Dulcepamba Watershed

The past two weeks have been productive, challenging and eye-opening for all seven of us.  We’ve toured the watershed with Rachel and have had the opportunity to meet with many community members and their leaders.  We started our trip with a four day stay in San Pablo de Amali, where we got to know the town and people who are most affected by this conflict.  Listening to the stories of their ongoing struggle over the last ten years gave us a deeper understanding of the true extent of the hydroelectric dam’s impact on the community.  While we were there, Hidrotambo was acutely aware of our presence.  Guards followed and photographed us as we met with community members, and the company attempted to spread negative propaganda about our mission.  It was surprising how much energy Hidrotambo spent attempting to intimidate and alienate us.
               

Conversing with community leaders has helped us better understand the climate and crop distribution within the watershed. It has also enabled us to make personal connections with farmers, allowing us to establish secure locations to install the four weather stations.   These weather stations will be situated in four different microclimates present in the watershed.  They will give us an understanding of the watershed’s climatic variability, and allow us to estimate the water use of the watershed’s major crops.
 

We arranged community meetings around the watershed to discuss our mission, the future of water rights in Ecuador, and how our weather stations can help provide concrete data needed to apply for water concessions.  Many people are uninformed about the issue of water access and the future impact of the hydroelectric dam on their access to water.  Through these meetings, we aim to develop a trusting relationship with the people in the watershed’s major communites, and raise awareness of future water availability.
 

Talking with local farmers has provided us with valuable insight into crop distribution and farming practices.  To determine the economic value of water and distribution of crops in the region, we have created a survey designed to estimate farmer’s income from crops.  The socioeconomic and crop distribution data will be overlayed with data from the four weather stations, to determine crop water demand of the entire watershed over the summer growing season.
               

In addition to our time spent working on our project, we have had the chance to experience Ecuador’s unique culture.  Driving through cities, towns, and along mountain roads, we’ve gotten to visit local markets, try new foods, and enjoy Ecuador’s beautiful scenery. 

 

Take a look at the pictures below to see some highlights of our visit so far!