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Laura L. Hunt
414-229-6447

Engineers Without Borders Web site

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Efforts of student engineers pay off in Guatemala
UWM engineering students and residents of Quejchip lay the pipeline for a water distribution system.

After two trips to Central America, and hours of fundraising, data collecting and engineering design work, UWM engineering students found out exactly how much work it takes to siphon drinking water more than a mile from its source over rugged terrain.

The UWM student chapter of Engineers Without Borders (EWB), barely two years old, has successfully built a water distribution pipeline for the village of Quejchip in the highlands of Guatemala. The growing village had recently purchased two new springs to help fill the demand for fresh water. But villagers had to find a way to get the water down the mountain, where they live.

The project put access to water a lot closer to home, but unfortunately, the water remains contaminated with fecal coliform, including the bacteria E. coli.

Senior Scott Anderson (right) talks about the project with Michael Lovell, new dean of the College of Engineering and Applied Science.

Photo by Alan Magayne-Roshak

So in addition to the engineering, students had to convince the villagers that the water would still need to be boiled or chlorinated before drinking it. Graduate student Marissa Jablonski says the residents were unaware that the water could make them sick.

“You could see how dirty the water was at the spring,” says Jablonski. “There were animals grazing nearby, and yet people were fishing in it, kids were swimming in it. It didn’t faze them.”

Students taught them to test the water for the presence of E. coli by smearing a sample in a growth medium and watching for purple dots to appear, which helped them understand the importance of water treatment.

The experience inspired next year’s project – to build a chlorination tank for the present distribution system, expand the pipes to reach more village homes, and construct latrines and a hand-washing station for the village’s elementary school.

Fifteen members of the group traveled to Quejchip altogether, half last summer and the other half this summer. They discovered firsthand how the best-laid plans can go awry at the last minute. “What we had on paper and what we encountered in the field were very different. For one thing, instead of going around the mountain, they decided to go over it,” says senior Scott Anderson.

The final engineering plans had to be reviewed and approved by the national EWB organization.

Working alongside three local masons and more than 50 laborers, the group constructed a spring box around the water source and transported water by PVC pipe to a concrete distribution tank at the village’s edge.

“I was most impressed with how hard these people worked during construction,” says Anderson.

“That determination is what the national EWB was looking for in a project,” he adds. “It means the people take ownership of it and will take care of it for years to come.”

Participating Students
Marissa Jablonski
Justin Hegarty
Carly Hassler
Scott Anderson
Alan Stager
James Hagen
Christopher Wall
Andy Plier
Dusty Ottman
Dane Anderson
Elizabeth Pizano (Linguistics education)
Phil Keeku (graduated)
Benjamin Castleberry (graduated)
John Schafer (graduated)
Colin Casey (graduated)