Nem tudo é esquecido...

 

 

 

Access to clean, potable water as a human right sounds like it should be straight forward...am I right? This is not the case and we see this proof through costs, legalities, jurisdictions, social class, tribal lands, rural country sides, and large metropolitan areas. Each individual should have the right to clean water - should be no question.

While doing this project, I learned about the different sources that provide water to people, access to water, history of Brazil and how it all ties together with the current state that it is in. Whether it be unequally divided in urban centers with questionable sanitary systems, or access to water in rural and indigenous areas, it is still a topic of human rights and environmental justice. For many years, Brazil has been working on improving the system. The question lies with how much importance is placed on it and plans for the future.

In conclusion to my personal experience, the title of this entry means "all is not forgotten" in Portuguese. Before arriving to Brazil, I didn’t know what to expect other than travel anxiety, and what you see on the internet - beautiful beaches in Rio, dangerous favelas, and large Amazonian creatures. By the time I left, I gained SO much perspective on who Brazilians are as individuals and their culture, and an appreciation of Brazil’s history, vibrance, and beauty.

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One of the largest aquifers in the world...

The Guarani Aquifer is one of the largest in the world. The groundwater supplies about 70 million people in the area (outside of Brazil as well). As a human right, citizens and tribes should be entitled to this, never denied access. The link below is a pdf in case you want to read more information about it.

http://www.oas.org/dsd/Events/english/Documents/OSDE_7Guarani.pdf



Sources
Map. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guarani_Aquifer

Interview with an Environmental and Sanitation Engineering Student at Dom Bosco

Students in the stadium at Dom Bosco

My host sister was able to provide a connection to an Environmental and Sanitary Engineering student from a university in Campo Grande, Mato Grosso do Sul. This aspiring student wants to help improve the environment and quality of life for others. I was able to have brief interview with her after returning home from Brazil. I asked her some questions and she provided written responses. They are as follows:

Please state your name, what you're studying, and where. 

Nayara Estrabis- I study Environmental and Sanitary Engineering at Universidade Católica Dom Bosco - in Campo Grande, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. 

As a student who studies environment and sanitation, why is it important to you? What are your plans after you graduate?

It's opened my eyes about my home, the world, and my life. Since I was a child I was very attracted to the environmental questions and wanted to do something even when I was small. So studying this, I feel like doing something to improve the environment and our lives. I'm in my third year in this course, and don't know right now what I'm really going to do, but I'm thinking about water and degraded areas. 

Where do the water sources come from? Does go into a reservoir or dam?
Our water sources come from a river - Guariroba River. It goes in a reservoir. Actually we have a Water Treatment Plant, that is who provides the water for us. The name of company is Aguas Guariroba and we pay for the water.                                                                                                          She provided a site for more information here http://www.aguasguariroba.com.br/agua/abastecimento

What would you like to see improve?
I think that the sanitary questions are related to the health of the people. Improving the conditions so all people have potable water to use would improve their health, and improve the environment. You have to have a good system for people to use.

Do you know about any laws for indigenous people having access to water?
I don't know, but I think it's the same for us here in my city... they have an urban aldeia (village) they live almost near downtown   

How important do you think the sanitation system is and access to water for indigenous people are?
It's very interesting. It's very important, or better, necessary.


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Guarani Tribe

Tribal woman drinking from the river.

Ambrosio- Tribe leader

Our class went on a 4 day trip on a packed, but comfortable bus to the Pantanal region, Bonito, and Caraapo. The region was breathtaking. We were lucky enough to visit indigenous areas that not even local residents know about or ever travel to. The Guarani-Kaiowa tribe's quality of life spun me into a culture shock. The people of this tribe filled me with hope, as they continue making their presence known, and fight for equal rights. The tribe still has about 30,000 members and are mainly located in Mato Grosso do Sul. They have a deep knowledge about the ecological interactions between nature and humans. They weave, do ceramics, and are skilled horsemen. Many have lost the language but they have resurrected it in schools. 

We set out on what seemed like a long journey, to meet with Ambrosio and other members of the tribe. We arrived at a small village with homes made of grass roofs, no running water, no electricity, and no plumbing. A classmate and I followed 2 of the women down to a river and I was able to have her translate for me when I asked them where they get their water. To my surprise, one of the women answered that the river is where they bathe and get their drinking water from. I was shocked! The reason they don't have these utilities is because these Natives are in the process of rightfully claiming their land after anthropologists came and surveyed the land and verified that it belonged to them. While they are in the process of waiting, the city has denied them running water.

After learning this, I was very frustrated because Mato Grosso do Sul is home to the Guarani Aquifer that stores the larges fresh water underground reservoirs in South America, 2nd largest water reservoir in the world! You would think that the municipalities would be able to provide water to the citizens of their state. What it comes down to is money and legalities. 

More pictures of the village...

Children of the Guarani Tribe

This is an interesting and recent article about what the Guarani tribe members are going through. This doesn't just apply to this tribe, but tribes all over Brazil. It's a serious problem! This doesn't have much to do with water, but it does give insight on what they do to fight for their human rights.

http://www.tehrantimes.com/world/102726-homeland-or-mass-suicide-brazils-guarani-kaiowa-tribe-says

Indigenous People's Rights to Water

We visited an organic farm that students of the Guarani tribe are able to help with. This is great because this agriculture uses less pesticides which promotes cleaner water run off! Within the law, the health department is responsible for providing this indigenous Aldeia (village or tribe) with water. They have pumps outside of homes that they pump water from.

They recently started harvesting a nut called Urukum with little red berries inside, which they are in the process of selling them to be used for makeup. They tasted pretty yummy too!

This was a mandioca plant, a very popular food in Brazil, with almost a potato like texture. They are so delicia! The flour is used to make pao de queijo (cheese bread, also very famous).

 

 The pictures below are also from a different farm that was a good distance outside of Campo Grande consisting of a Quilombola. This is, a community constituted by descendents of enslaved africans who maintain cultural conditions, religions, and substinence for centuries. Mato Grosso do Sul has 2 Quilombos and 10 or 11 are in the process of being revived. They use very old practices still, for example a wood mill and a horse to turn it. 

Campo Grande

We arrived in Campo Grande, Mato Grosso do Sul after studying in Sao Paulo for 3 weeks. We were all welcomed to stay with wonderful host families who were waiting to greet us at the little airport in Campo Grande. It was a new and different atmosphere compared to Sao Paulo, but both places had their own unique characteristics. Campo Grande is the largest city and the capital of Mato Grosso do Sul. It is the "country" with a slower pace and suburban feel, with cowboys that carried around Terrere - a common drink to this area, made with loose tea and cold water. Accompanied with Samba and Sertaneja (Brazilian country music), delicious fresh food and coconut trees in their backyards. We went on a city tour within the first couple days we were there and toured the 2 universities we were a part of, Universidade Federal (which was on strike) and Universidade Catolica de Dom Bosco. 

These pictures above and below are of me with my lovely host family!

The Atlantic Rainforest

 Our class took a trip to the Atlantic Rainforest or "Mata Atlantica" after learning about it from Professora Waverli. It was just a quick bus ride outside of the Sao Paulo metropolis and I was surprised how close we were. The city is actually surrounded by forests and parks, and it was explained to us that many residents are not even aware of the 200 million year old "Mata Atlantica", unfortunately. Being there was inspiring and beautiful. I can definitely see why Waverli is so passionate about preserving and protecting this forest from destruction and deforestation because only about 7% of its main vegetation is left. 
                                                         

 

 

 We were informed that this rain forest represents 15% of Brazilian territory and it is very special because it is something that only exists in Brazil. Many people are very concerned with the Amazonian rain forest because it covers half of Brazil, but other countries in South America also share it as well.*

  

Here are some facts about the Atlantic:

1. It has higher rates of species within an area than the Amazon because it is older than the Amazon.

2. It contains 20,000 species of trees, and even some species related to the Congo in Africa because        when the tectonic plates split the forests split. 

3. Precious stones can be found in the soil as well due to the drainage into the interior of 

    the Brazilian Plateau. 

4. Atlantic Rainforest is 200 million years old and the Amazon is 50 million years old. 

5. In the forest, the largest biomass of species are bugs.

6. Over the last 60 years we've caused the most damage of all time

7. Trees are important because 1/2 of all medications come from them! 

 

The link below is a fairly simple explanation of why rainforests are important to the water cycle, but basically rainforests add moisture to the atmosphere through transpiration and is a huge factor in decreasing drought! The growth, industrialization, and urban sprawl in the metropolitan region of Sao Paulo are a huge risk factor when it comes to protecting this rainforest.

 http://kids.mongabay.com/elementary/404.html

 

Professor Waverli left me with this, "If we don't know how to conserve our backyard, how can we honor any other place." This quote spoke volumes to me because the importance we put on building and new infrastructure, creating massive urbanization, minimizes awareness of how it will effect our natural resources.

Sources

* http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/amazon.htm

Profa Waverli

At the Universidade Metodista, where we studied in Sao Paulo for 3 weeks, we had the opportunity to listen to some wonderful professors speak. Professora Waverli Neuberger is a teacher of sustainability and conservation who has studied ecology for 32 years. She presented on the Billings Reservoir and touched on the Tietê  river and sanitation in Sao Paulo. She talked a lot about the developments that have been made throughout time in the region, goals achieved or that ought to be achieved, and problems that we are still faced with. Waverli is also very passionate about the Atlantic rainforest that I will eventually talk about. She briefly describes how the Billings-Tietê system works in the videos below. These are just a couple segments that I thought would be relevant to include.

Do you get what you pay for?

What constitutes a perfectly satisfactory water supply to some people, leaves others considering themselves under-served. No one that I met drank the water from the faucet in Brazil. However, this is not uncommon where I am from in Washington State either- mostly as a preference rather than necessity. Numerous times people said to me "don't drink the water!", which is what any typical traveler is told. But this goes for the residents of the cities I visited as well. Every household has purchased big water jugs with taps for their homes, or have their own filtration systems on the wall next to the kitchen sink. Other than homes, every restaurant automatically would offer a bottle of water if you asked for water. Usually the water would come in mini bottles at R$2 or $R2.50. Also, if you ordered a different drink, you were always asked if you wanted "yelo" (this means ice in Portuguese). This is what the residents are accustomed to, but there is still a lot of concern and much more progress to be made.

 After talking with my host family, I learned that people typically pay around R$30 to R$50 per month for water if they live in a house. This does not always include sanitation in the cost. People who live in apartments usually get water for a fairly cheap cost which is included in the rent. But according to Silvia Cruz, an environmental graduate who spoke to our class, 83% of the population have in-house access to the water supply, while 57% of the population have access to the public sanitation system, plus an added 12% who have septic tanks in Brazil. The metropolitan area of Sao Paulo, has 11% of the population, but only 1.6% of fresh water.

 

A favela outside of Sao Paulo

The favelas or slums or more appropriately named... "comunidades" have been given credit for the pollution. In Brazil, "favelas" are defined as: one comes into being when squatters occupy vacant land at the edge of a city and construct shanties of salvaged or stolen materials. Communities form over time, often developing an array of social and religious organizations and forming associations to obtain such services as running water and electricity. Sometimes the residents manage to gain title to the land and then are able to improve their homes. Crowding, unsanitary conditions, worse nutrition, pollution, and disease are more present in the poorer favelas. (merriam-webster) 

However, conditions have improved over time, but still many of these communities don't have access to well constructed piping systems or can't get supplied water from the city. A lot of these areas are close to water reservoirs, which in turn promotes more chances of dumping of domestic waste. A friend that we met in Rio de Janeiro, informed me that São Conrado is a neighborhood in Rio that has terrible sanitation treatment and allowing waste to make its way into the sea. Although many improvements have been made for treatment of water, large cities are still left with a huge problem in dealing with it, associated with old piping, unstable pipes, or no pipes at all. It makes me question how tight the regulations are on having a clean city. This is a country that is faced with populous city centers, but no solutions and not enough education to combat water pollution.

I found out what the water bins are that you see either in tan or blue on the top of homes. A Brazilian, Jonathan Jones, provided me with the following information: Most Brazilian homes have a Tanque de Agua (water tank) made out of Masonite located on top of their house. The city water is piped up to that tank, which holds around 100 to 500 liters of water depending on the size of the tank. From the water tank the water is then allowed to flow into the house's plumbing, for most in home plumbing in Brazil is not pressurized like it is in the United States. The water tank on top of the house sometimes has a tendency to collect moss or algae.

The Tietê River and Billings Reservoir

Every day in Sao Paulo, I crossed the Tietê River that runs right through the city. Rivers running through cities notoriously attract more pollution due to the increased population. Some days the stench of this river was unbearable. Water pollution can come from many sources such as non-point and point source pollution- downstream trash flow, water run-off (toxic cleaning agents, pet waste, pesticide runoff, etc), litter, erosion, and from businesses. I asked my host sister if the river was clean and safe to go in, and she said "no, no, no"! 

It made me question where São Paulo resident’s water supply was coming from. I was told that the river upstream is very clean, but once it gets to more populous regions it picks up all kinds of pollution. Efforts to clean up the river are in place, but even if the river is free of visible pollution, it still contains trace pollutants that have settled into the soils from industrial residues and domestic waste over the years. It would be a very tedious and expensive process to clean up, and would most likely consist of dredging which in some cases make the situation worse by stirring up toxins.

I learned from my research that the Tiete River basin and the Guarapiranga, and Billings reservoir are the main sources that provide water to the city. The Guarapiranga reservoir provides water for over 4 million people in São Paulo, but uncontrolled informal settlements with no water supply, or sanitation services, has led to water contamination. There is a potential threat of its viability as a future supply of water. SABESP is the largest and main water treatment facility for the city and initially focused more on providing water rather than sanitation services because water was the main community demand.

The Billings Reservoir is divided by land with one side for recreational use such as boating, swimming, fishing and the other side as waste water for the treatment plant. It was developed by Canadian engineer and is one of the oldest industrial areas of Brazil. There is a great amount of discharge from Billings to the river. Professora Waverli of Universidade de Metodista stated that, "drinking water may be better within 10  years."  

  

 "When you don't put a value on the environment, it is already destroyed."

Sao Paulo Water Run-off and City Growth

                                                                        

 In the metropolitan area of Sao Paulo, there are many hilly neighborhoods, coupled with a hefty population. In Santo Andre, my neighborhood had countless pipes that came straight out of the sidewalks and onto the roads. These pipes allow for an “open-air” drainage system. This system takes “gray” water flow right down the hills. I was walking home from the bus stop one day, and I could smell a strong soapy odor. I was able to pin-point the soap suds draining out of one of these pipes into the grooves divots on the street. I easily followed it to where it was draining into...storm drains. These typically drain right into larger bodies of water. This could easily lead to larger pollution issues.

 

As I started asking my host family and other students questions, I learned that sanitation has been a huge issue in the past, but has drastically improved. The years between 2004 - 2009 were turning points for the city’s water systems, when better water facilities were introduced. The access from different water sources and standards of water treatment improved, but the city still faces many obstacles. Change creates expenses and takes a lot of time to make improvements. 

Some of the pollution concerns include dumping of toxic liquids, industrial products, litter, and human sanitation bags on the sidewalks for collection. With rain and wind, this waste can be easily transported to storm drains and rivers that flow into oceans and lakes.

The problems associated with water pollution stem from many different causes, humans and businesses being the largest contributors. The questions that arise are: Is there a high enough importance placed on updated water treatment facilities? Is the access to clean water available? How many tons per year of polluted water run-off are allowed to flow into bodies of water? The long term effects on the environment, animal welfare and people's health must be taken into consideration. 

The other problem is that the Sao Paulo metropolitan region is huge. It is referred to as the ABCD region - Santo Andre, Sao Bernardo do Campo, Sao Caetano do Sul, and Diadema with many other suburban areas. There are many slums or places known as "favelas" that do not have proper piping or the access to sewage. With 20 million people in this region alone, it will take time for these services to catch up with its urban sprawl. Thus leaving environmental and human welfare on the back burner. 

Oi Brazil !

During the summer of 2012, I was able to complete University of Washington‘a Human Rights and Environmental Justice study abroad program in Brazil. One of the requirements was to complete a media project. The project was to explore a human rights or environmental justice issue that Brazilians are faced with. When I began this exploration, I was overtaken by the history of such a resourceful and diverse country. I became swept away in the culture and learning the Brazilian way, the "Jeitinho". Having little experience in creating mediums, I thought a blog/photo journal would be a great way to share my research and the time I spent in the country. In this blog you will find observations, interviews, seminars, research, and photographs of what I gathered while I was in the areas of Sao Paulo and Mato Grosso do Sul. 

My first thoughts upon arriving - culture shock! The language barrier, the busy city of Sao Paulo, new families and friends to get to know....the list goes on. Aside from that, my Santo Andre host family welcomed me and set me at ease. As I was taking it all in, I couldn't help but notice the many differences compared to the U.S. It led me to the concerning fact of the water quality and access, which would eventually solidify my project exploration: access to clean water.  My goal is to share education, research, and awareness on the topic. 

My University-Universidade de Metodista

My Sao Paulo host family