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Arab News
28-06-2025
- Business
- Arab News
Drilling for water in Venezuela's parched oil town
MARACAIBO: In Venezuela's oil capital of Maracaibo, a drilling frenzy has led to dozens of new wells — but the valuable liquid being pumped out is just water, not petroleum. In a symbol of the woes of Venezuela's crumbling economy, the once flourishing oil town of 2 million people is parched. Experts blame the nationwide shortage of drinking water on corruption and years of underinvestment and mismanagement by national and local governments, resulting in frequent water cuts. The corroding infrastructure has led to schools, homes, businesses, churches and health centers all digging their own wells — at a huge expense. A private well costs between $1,000 and $6,000, a fortune in the sanctions-hit Caribbean country where the minimum monthly wage is around $200. As a result, homes that come with a ready-made well and generator — Venezuelans also live with recurring power cuts — sell for a premium. While water rationing has been in place in Venezuelan cities for years, the situation in Maracaibo has become critical, as pumping stations break down, old pipes leak and reservoirs run dry. No water came out of the taps in certain parts of the city for over a month at the start of 2025. Manuel Palmar and six other families in the lower-middle-class neighborhood of Ziruma saw the writing on the wall four years ago. They each paid $2,500 to build a 12-meter-deep (40-foot) well, which can store up to about 80,000 liters (21,000 gallons) of spring water each week. Now when Palmar turns on the tap, water gushes out for free. The water is not fit for drinking due to its high salinity — saltwater from the Caribbean Sea seeps into Lake Maracaibo, a coastal lake used as a freshwater source — but 'it's perfect for washing clothes and flushing toilets,' he explained. 'It's a blessing!' the 34-year-old accountant said. There's a solution of sorts for every budget. Some residents fill 200-liter drums at official filling stations or communal taps for $2-$3. Others order a water truck to fill their building's tank for between $40 and $60. Some even recycle the water produced by the tropical city's ubiquitous air conditioners or collect rainwater. But those are all quick fixes. Over the past six years, more and more residents have begun digging wells to guarantee their long-term supply for the future. Gabriel Delgado has built about 20 wells in Maracaibo, including at a heart disease clinic and four private schools. He also built one at his mother-in-law's home: a gray cement cylinder, one and a half meters in diameter, buried under metal sheeting and rocks. Cobwebs dangle just above the water level, but as soon as he activates the pump, water pours forth. It's crystal clear, unlike the yellowish liquid that flows from the city's taps during the rainy season, and Delgado eagerly sips it. Venezuelans must receive authorization from health and environmental authorities before drilling a well, and they are required to provide water samples for testing to ensure it is fit for consumption once it's built. But not everyone bothers. Javier Otero, head of Maracaibo's municipal water department, told AFP that he had come across shallow artisanal wells built near sewers or polluted ravines. 'Some people drink water that is not potable, that is brackish,' he told AFP. The municipality has built seven wells to supply Maracaibo's poorer neighborhoods.
The Guardian
13-06-2025
- Science
- The Guardian
A map, a myth and a pre-Incan lagoon: the man who brought water back to a drought-ridden town
One day in 1983, while studying a hand-drawn map from 1792 of his home town in Ecuador, Galo Ramón, a historian, came across a dispute between a landowner and two local Indigenous communities, the Coyana and the Catacocha. The boundary conflict involved an ancient lagoon, depicted on the map. 'The drawing depicted a lagoon brimming with rainwater,' says Ramón. Ravines were depicted forming below the high-altitude lagoon, indicating that it supplied watersheds further down – contrary to the typical flow where a watershed feeds into the lagoon. Ramón had discovered a long-forgotten ancient water management system conceived by the Paltas, a pre-Incan civilisation that inhabited the semi-arid region more than 1,000 years ago. Ramón set out to recreate the Paltas' lagoon system and, 40 years on, the region has enjoyed an environmental regeneration, offering solutions for Ecuador – which regularly faces severe droughts – and other parts of the world struggling to address water scarcity with limited resources. Galo Ramón was born in Catacocha, southern Ecuador, in 1952, a time when access to water for drinking and irrigation was unreliable. As a young man, he moved to Quito for university and to pursue his career as a historian. Eventually, he directed his research towards the history of the Paltas canton in Catacocha's province of Loja. 'I was born in Paltas, where people have very little water. Although I don't live there any more, I was eager to contribute with my knowledge,' he says. When Ramón began his research in Catacocha, an urban area with a population of 8,000, people barely had half an hour of water a day. 'People here live in constant insecurity about the chances of rain,' says Ramón. The region has highly variable rainfall patterns due to its location at the convergence of two ocean currents – the Humboldt and South Equatorial. When the Humboldt current predominates, there is minimal rainfall, averaging about 300mm (12in) to 400mm a year. Approximately every seven years, when an El Niño occurs – warming sea surface temperatures – annual rainfall can rise to 4-5 metres. In years with consistent rainfall, most of it occurs in just one or two months, with about 70% falling in March and April. During this period, there are usually three to five intense tropical storms, when up to 850mm of rainfall can occur in the region – more than in many other parts of the country. But as the region has very steep, rocky and irregular soil with poor permeability, water rapidly runs off and waterways tend to dry out. From May to December, the region experiences no rain, strong winds and intense sunlight, which cause soil erosion and reduce moisture in the soil. Still, the Paltas people not only managed to survive but thrive in this environment. 'So I began a historical investigation into the Paltas, including a series of Indigenous myths that still survive,' says Ramón, 'as that, it seemed to me, could offer modern solutions to the problem of drought.' Ramón discovered that designs for the Pisaca lagoon were recorded in maps, wills, accounts of land disputes, property titles and interviews. He realised the Paltas had developed a system for sowing and harvesting water that involved collecting and infiltrating rainwater, groundwater and underground runoff (sowing) to recover it later when it reappeared in springs and wells downstream (harvesting). That system enabled the Paltas to regulate water flows and store water in aquifers for domestic use and irrigation during periods of drought. 'The springs tend to increase significantly during the rainy months and then dry out by August due to poor soil permeability. Without the Paltas' system, water runoff is rapid, so you don't have a permanent source to feed the spring,' Ramón says. The main element of this system is the artificial lentic – or still water – wetland (cocha in Quechua) created at high altitudes to collect rainwater during the rainy months. The Paltas built these lagoons on fractured rocky terrain – the permeability of the pond bottoms allowed for slow water infiltration and aquifers to recharge. 'Then they planted hydrophilic plants inside the lagoon, which developed roots that helped retain the water, slowing infiltration so that the lagoon could last all year,' says Ramón. As hydrophilic plants cover the surface of the lagoon, they also prevent excessive water evaporation. The Paltas also observed zones where plants retained their leaves even in the driest months of the year due to higher levels of soil moisture. This made it possible to follow the direction of the subsurface flow in the shallow aquifer. 'The leaves are green because the aquifer is right below. So the Paltas observed that line of greenery in the dry months and were able to place the lagoons perfectly,' says Ramón. The Paltas also built small dams along rivers to control runoff during the rainy season, which infiltrated downstream, creating a wet microsystem that maintained soil moisture. They also cared for headwater forests that captured moisture from the mist and planted vegetation on slopes to reduce erosion and surface runoff. More than 50 species of trees, shrubs and groundcover plants emulating forest biodiversity enhanced the system, helping the Paltas retain water in their fields. Ramón and his colleagues noted the remains of those systems during fieldwork and interviewed local people, collecting stories and traditions. That was when Ramón deciphered the meaning of an Indigenous myth, that of 'touro Cango' (Cango the bull), he had heard as a child. 'The myth said that the bull lived in Catacocha while there were lakes, as he liked the grass that only grew in them. If there were no grass, he would not eat,' says Ramón. 'This means that when the lakes disappeared, the bull disappeared too.' The grasses that Cango the bull ate were hydrophilic plants essential to the wetland. 'Little by little, the ancient water-management system described in myths, documents, petroglyphs and stone carvings was aligned as a coherent whole,' says Ramón. Sign up to Global Dispatch Get a different world view with a roundup of the best news, features and pictures, curated by our global development team after newsletter promotion The Paltas' system faded from memory during the early 18th-century Spanish colonial period due to a decline in the Indigenous population from diseases such as smallpox and measles, landowners expanding their properties and the Catholic church draining lakes linked to pre-Christian rituals. The land was eventually given over to cattle and sugar cane. Even gardens were abandoned because of a lack of water, which increased food insecurity. Pisaca lagoon was the last to dry out, less than a century ago. As a result of the disappearance of the Paltas' lagoon system, the Catacocha aquifers and springs became depleted, and water was available for only half an hour a day by 2001. In 2005, Ramón, who by then was the leader of Comunidec, a human rights foundation, decided to rebuild the Paltas' lagoon system. Estefanía Maldonado, a constitutional rights lawyer who became involved with the foundation from the outset, says their goal at that stage was to empower peasant communities and civil society. Vilma Collaguazo, 44, who lives in Catacocha, began attending project meetings and workshops early on. She remembers that when she first heard of the plan, she didn't believe it would work. 'We had no idea how the lagoons were going to fill up, given that they were so big,' she says. Comunidec secured resources, and the project began with the restoration of the lagoon on the eastern slopes of Pisaca mountain between 2005 and 2008. It is now the largest, with a storage capacity of 78,420 cubic metres. 'By the end of 2005, there were some hefty rains and the lagoons were filled,' Collaguazo recalls. 'Since then, there was water almost year-round in the springs, and even new springs emerged. People had water to drink and for their crops, so we began to believe again.' In 2010, the Nature and Culture International Foundation and bought 406 hectares (1,000 acres) of land around Pisaca, supported by Comunidec, to create a reserve, remove cattle and use the land to maintain the water system permanently. By 2013, 28 lagoons had been built, as well as other elements of the water management system, such as tajamares (small dams or weirs) and water reservoirs, that had been part of the landscape more than 1,000 years ago. Since then, local people have reforested the area with native plants that reduce water evaporation, conserve moisture and protect the slopes. The project has increased Catacocha's water availability from one to 10 hours daily and enhanced food security through community gardens, resulting in the creation of 250 lagoons and tajamares. Antonio Díaz, who has been involved with the project since 2005, has reaped the benefits. 'I live not far from the Pisaca lagoon and have plenty of water for my little garden and my animals,' he says. 'It is truly a good thing.' Despite its success in reducing water scarcity and food insecurity, successive governments in Ecuador have not been persuaded to invest in rebuilding the systems. 'Perhaps politicians don't see that it is an investment that will yield immediate returns,' Ramón says. 'This year it rained little, so the hydroelectric plants lack water. When it rains, there is no runoff management. Ancient techniques allow you to do just that and could be a solution for all of Ecuador.' Collaguazo believes that Catacocha demonstrates how water scarcity can be addressed with positive environmental outcomes and without significant investment. 'Water is a constitutional right for all. Yet, how do you provide it to a rural community that may be in debt and lack the cashflow to carry out projects?' she asks. 'We don't necessarily need monumental projects to have water. We can also do it by recovering ancestral knowledge.'
CTV News
11-06-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Heineken to invest over US$2.7B in Mexico through 2028
MEXICO CITY — Beer maker Heineken will invest US$2.75 billion in different projects in Mexico, the company's CEO in the country said on Wednesday. Oriol Bonaclocha said during Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum's morning press conference that the investment will include the construction of a new factory in the country's southeast. The new plant in the state of Yucatan will have an initial production capacity of 4 million hectoliters and that amount is expected to be doubled in the future depending on the company's needs, Bonaclocha said. 'We do not plan to close any factories, this is an expansion,' he added. In April, Grupo Modelo, the producer of Corona and other Mexican beer brands, announced it would invest more than $3.6 billion in Mexico, despite concerns over water shortages in the country. The relationship between beer makers and other industries like agriculture has been a longstanding issue in Mexico. Almost three years ago, the construction of a Constellation Brands brewery in Mexicali was halted to protect local water resources and moved to Veracruz in eastern Mexico. (Reporting by Raul Cortes and Aida Pelaez-Fernandez. Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Mark Potter)
Zawya
29-05-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Dubai's AMEA Power, Spain's Cox to set up JV to develop water, power projects
Spanish water and energy company Cox and Dubai-based renewable energy producer AMEA Power have agreed to establish a joint venture to develop, execute, and manage strategic water and energy infrastructure projects across the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. The companies will combine their technical, operational, and financial capabilities to address critical resource challenges in regions with rapidly increasing demand, they said in a joint statement. AMEA Power holds a 3.76 percent stake in Cox as an anchor shareholder, acquired during the latter's IPO in November 2024. No financial details were shared on the joint venture. Cox's current concession portfolio comprises five water assets for up to 945,000 cubic metres per day (m³/day), six energy generation projects and two transmission line concessions. It has delivered more than 8.3 million m³/day in desalination and treatment capacity worldwide. The company operates under a concession-based business model focused on water and energy, and complemented by engineering, procurement, and operations & maintenance (O&M) services. AMEA Power's portfolio comprises a project pipeline exceeding 6 gigawatts (GW) and more than 2,600 megawatts (MW) in operation and under construction. 'We aim to develop projects where access to water and energy complement each other, creating new opportunities where both are essential for the sustainable development of communities,' said Enrique Riquelme, Executive Chairman of Cox. (Writing by P Deol; Editing by Anoop Menon) (
