Bano Units in Ipeti Choco

Lisandro addressing the village meeting

My first meeting with the newly formed Water Committee in Ipeti was one of those precious “Peace Corps moments”, that we all hope to have. As you may recall, the WC was all but defunct in the village. There was just one guy (Lisandro) doing his best to keep the water flowing. Only a handful of people paid the $2/mo water fee. And he was getting tired of it.

New Water Committee is sworn in

We tried to have a town meeting, but only 15 or so showed up. Then, we hit upon the idea of printing up and hand delivering notices, which got us a grand turnout – 80 of the 250 adults in town. At which meeting Lisandro rose to the occasion and the community responded with support, both in people stepping forward to serve on the WC and in 18 people paying their dues. And the community also had the opportunity to discuss other matters – access road, transportation, the new saw mill, etc., which they used with gusto. These folks are not shy and really like to talk. The meeting went on for 3 hours after I left.

So, I was delighted when I came to our first Directivo meeting at the WC office – a defunct USAID tourism office – and all 6 members were waiting for me. 15 minutes EARLY !!  The enthusiasm had not waned, one bit. Brought a smile to my heart.

Ipeti water tanks need some work

I went through all the training materials. Presenting them on my laptop seemed to be particularly impressive to them. My community partner, Global Brigades, had generously donated a complete set of journals, ledgers and receipt books, which further enthused the group. I still need to work with them on setting up the books and planning ways to get more of the community to pay, including a “wall of shame” and maybe lowering the fee – we’ll see when we sit down to draft an annual budget. But this was really a heart-warming fresh start of community development.

Afterwards, we went up to inspect the 2 water storage tanks and discussed the needed repairs and plans to clean and disinfect the system. The GREAT news is that they have a 12V chlorine generator that will make all the chlorine they need – on the spot.

The Bayano watershed 3D map

The added bonus was that a couple of Americans from the Smithsonian were also in town, to give a presentation on reforestation as a means of preserving the local watershed. They had a huge 3D map, which was most impressive.

Bucket with sawdust and scoop, bottle for flushing and urinal

I also met with the Brigades team and some locals about the Bano units (composting toilet/shower/sink) they are building in the village. There were some major problems with the design, including no urinal for men and complete darkness inside with the door closed. The darkness was a perfect opportunity to introduce the gang to the “famous” bottle bulb, which I used with great success in Peru. So, we installed one on the spot, to much acclaim. After exhaustive discussion about how to construct the urinal, my friend Pablo went running off and came back with the perfect solution – a square concrete block, usually used for making columns in a building. We then proceeded to run down all the little extra features to make the Banos work really well.

Pablo was not shy about modeling for the Banos manual.
Here, he is flushing the toilet urinal with water.

A word about Pablo, who is fast becoming a close friend and “go-to” guy in town. He and his wife run one of the 3 small stores (tiendas), that sell all manner of foods, drinks and supplies. They live in the back. Pablo is really bright – he gets concept right away and is an outstanding problem solver. He is outspoken and bold and well respected by the community. He is a little younger than me (63) and much shorter, strong as an ox. He is one of those guys that I instantly feel a bond with, like we’ve known each other for years. I like it when that happens.

Bottle Bulbs make a great addition of light in the shower
 and toilet areas

Another issue with the Bano construction was that they made round holes to set the plastic seat over. This would have caught a lot of poop on the edges, so we decided to use a plastic bucket as a “liner” on the existing units, but make a larger square form for future units. Pablo understood the problem instantly and had a frame constructed in minutes. I love this guy.

A dental problem caused a trip to the Emerald City. One of my (many) crowns came off and needed to be reset. Normally, a dental problem in a foreign country would be cause for alarm. But, this is where the Peace Corps truly has our backs. One call to the Medical Office and I had an appointment the next day. All paid for, including transportation. Problem solved.

Next week ….. VACATION !! Scuba diving in Portobelo on the Caribbean coast.