el salvador: water as a social
problem
Only 60% of El Salvador’s population has
access to running water and the country
suffers from devastating water-related
problems. Very often the water can not be
considered safe due to high levels of
pollution, and gastrointestinal disease due
to water pollution is the second largest
cause of visits to hospitals. Water has
gone from an environmental problem to a
social one, and now is becoming a political
problem as local groups take their message
to the streets, blockading main roads to
demand the government provide proper water
services.
Despite an annual rainfall of 1.8
metres, water levels in aquifers are
decreasing by 1.0 metre every year, both as
a result of over-exploitation of aquifers
and the destruction of water catchment
areas. Ninety percent of the country’s
natural water is contaminated, and half the
population drinks untreated water.
Water is thus a crucial social and
political topic in El Salvador. The
government has so far failed to address the
issue, presenting privatization of water
management as the only solution. This
stance comes after pressure from
organizations such as the World Bank, which
made water privatization a requirement of a
1996 US$24 million loan. However, popular
protests have forced the government to
declare that privatization of water
management will not go ahead. El
Salvadorans are now campaigning to have the
government take a more active role in water
management. They are asking for national
water policies to be overseen by the
Minister of the Environment, covering water
catchment areas, watersheds and river
basins.
more information
Friends of the Earth El
Salvador
Public Citizen’s critical
Mass Energy and Environment
Programme
