Water Engineers for the Americas
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| Founded | January 1, 2002 |
|---|---|
| Type | 501(c)(3) |
| 85-0482431 | |
| Location | |
Region served | Latin America |
| Services | Donated design and funding of clean water and basic sanitation systems |
| Method | Volunteer water engineers, low-cost, self-help projects, community participation |
Key people | Peter Fant, president |
| Employees | 2 part-time |
| Volunteers | 20 to 30 |
| Website | wefta |
Water Engineers for the Americas (WEFTA) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, founded in Santa Fe, New Mexico, in 2002.
In rural populations around the world, approximately 15% of people do not have access to improved water systems, and between 30-50% have unimproved sanitation systems.[1] Focusing on Latin American communities, WEFTA's mission is to ensure access to potable water and proper sanitation, reduce waterborne diseases, protect the environment and lessen the burden of hauling and disinfecting water on families, especially women and children.
WEFTA is an all-volunteer organization. The volunteer board of directors is made up of water engineers and community development professionals from several firms in the southwest United States, most notably Souder Miller & Associates (New Mexico) and Aqua Engineering (Utah). Engineers from these and other firms donate their expertise to help communities in Latin America build and maintain simple, inexpensive potable water and basic sanitation systems. Volunteers use vacation time or are on loan from their companies while on assignment. WEFTA works only when requested by the benefitting community, which covers the volunteer’s expenses on the ground. Transportation to projects is donated by individuals and through grants to cover overhead expenses through the Wallace Genetic Foundation. WEFTA also partners with UniversalGiving to raise fund for projects. 100% of any other donations received by WEFTA go directly to fund material costs for projects (such as PVC pipe, hand pumps, water purifiers, etc.).
How it works
A community needing water or sanitation generally hears about WEFTA through word of mouth. A leader of that community fills out an application and submits it to WEFTA in Santa Fe or to a local WEFTA volunteer. Before committing to a project, a WEFTA member meets with the entire community to identify the community leader who will manage the role of the beneficiaries of the project. The local community must collect 30-40% of the material cost of the project or apply for these funds from their municipalities or regional governments. WEFTA often matches these funds, which are low due to the low-tech nature of the projects. The community performs all unskilled labor and also collects materials such as gravel or sand, depending on the project. One or more water engineers visit and live within the community and design the simplest, most easy to maintain system possible to provide potable water and/or basic sanitation. The volunteer stays until the project is completed and WEFTA returns approximately every two years to ensure that the system is still functioning and is well maintained. Once a community is engaged with WEFTA, WEFTA guarantees to maintain and repair the water system for life with the help of the community.
