Water and city
The program
We work to ensure that La Paz is a resilient city with water security for future generations. We care for our watershed from the mountains to the city and promote a culture of responsible water use and reuse, allowing us to grow in balance with our environment.
We focus our efforts on five strategic action areas: water governance, outreach and communication, social participation, recovered water (water reuse), and watershed management.
Achievements
We maintain constant and active participation in the Basin Council (Consejo de Cuenca), ensuring that scientific evidence and citizen needs are considered in decision-making.
Through the Urban Oasis Alliance (Alianza Oasis Urbanos), we have managed to infiltrate an average of over 900,000 liters of rainwater per year into the aquifer, reducing runoff and creating greener, more resilient, and functional public spaces.
- Thanks to our water quality monitoring program, we provided the scientific evidence on the presence of arsenic that was crucial for empowering the community to demand the construction of a water purification plant for the Chametla and Centenario areas.
Contribute to maintaining water quality monitoring
With your donation, we can purchase the necessary materials to keep our water clean.
Projects
Learn more about our initiatives
Water Governance
We promote participatory, transparent, and collaborative water management in La Paz. We strive to ensure that decisions regarding this resource reflect the shared needs and responsibilities of the community. We boost participation in public policies, strengthen key stakeholders, improve citizen information, and foster alliances among government, academia, the private sector, and civil society to build lasting solutions to the water crisis.
Outreach and Communication
We research, analyze, and share updated and evidence-based information. We translate technical data into clear and accessible knowledge to strengthen decision-making from the government level down to citizens. Some examples include:
Key publications such as: the Action Plan for the Watershed, the Urban Oasis Construction Manual, the Plant Palette of BCS, etc.
For almost a decade, and in collaboration with the Citizen Observatory of Groundwater (OCAS), UABCS, and OOMSAPAS, we have conducted water quality monitoring in wells and household taps to generate a robust database on the health of our aquifer.
We create infographics, games, models, videos, and informative campaigns across various media.
Social Participation
We promote the active and informed participation of the community in La Paz to build a culture of responsible water stewardship and management through:
Practical workshops, such as the Urban Oasis construction workshops led by our allies at Urbanería, where communities learn to harvest rainwater and revegetate their spaces.
We inform and encourage participation in crucial decision-making forums for the city, such as public consultations for the Urban Development Plans.
We encourage student involvement in water issues. A key example is our collaboration with the UABCS Water Management and Science program, where future professionals actively participate in water quality monitoring across the city.
Recovered Water
We promote the recovery of water for reuse in the city. This ranges from the large-scale use of treated water via the city’s Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP), to the implementation of domestic reuse.
Some of the actions carried out are:
We study the water quality of the Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) and evaluate whether its use is safely and cost-effectively feasible for various purposes in the city.
We train personnel operating the water system in La Paz (OOMSAPAS and CEA) to ensure that recovered water is managed with the utmost technical rigor and in compliance with the law.
In collaboration with Pronatura Noroeste and the Autonomous University of Baja California Sur, we manage the restoration of the La Paz Ecopark Wetland, by sending treated water directly from the WWTP. We monitor water quality through laboratory tests and bioindicators (such as birds) to ensure it is a healthy ecosystem and a safe space for the entire community.
Watershed Management
We promote the planning and execution of projects to keep the La Paz Watershed healthy, ensuring aquifer recharge and water for the future.
We implement Nature-Based Solutions such as Urban Oases, which infiltrate rainwater and create green spaces; the Don Mariano Didactic Module, where we demonstrate the effectiveness of soil conservation works; and the restoration of the Ecopark wetland, a living space that combines biodiversity, education, and recreation for the community.
By doing so, we combat the challenges that affect us, such as soil erosion, water scarcity, and the risk of flooding.
