Daniela Martinez ’24
Civil and Environmental Engineering
Potable Water System Assessment
Our team conducted the assessment phase of a potable water system project for the community of Rosario Vainas in Manabí, Ecuador. The goal of this project is to design and implement a water system that will provide potable water for approximately 180 households. Rosario Vainas is a small, rural village in the rainforest lowlands of Ecuador. Currently, residents receive their water from a combination of tanks delivered from a nearby city, small hand-dug wells in the area, and a nearby river. In order to design the new water system, our team collected data on the existing water sources in the community to determine the continuity of the underground aquifer and to quantify contamination levels from agricultural surface runoff. We also surveyed members of the community to understand water and electricity access and usage, climate trends in the area, and to receive community input on our project design. Through this fieldwork, we successfully obtained the requisite geological, geographic, and demographic data to design a well for the community. We also formed relationships with community members and a local nongovernmental organization, relationships that are essential for building trust and stability in the project.
2022
Water and the Environment
Engineers Without Borders (EWB), Princeton Chapter, Ecuador- Manabí, Ecuador
Sigrid Adriaenssens, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Princeton University; Nolan Perreira, Project Mentor, EWB