About El Coyol de Linaca
El Coyol de Linaca is a community in the municipality of Choluteca in the department
of Choluteca in southern Honduras. There are roughly 800 people residing in 120
houses. Community members in Coyol del Linaca cannot obtain enough water to
meet their basic needs, meaning that they must forgo many basic hygiene and
sanitation practices. Thus, common colds, skin rashes, parasites, and diarrheal
diseases plague community members. Moreover, few homes have concrete floors,
proper functioning latrines, adequate water storage, or efficient stoves with
chimneys, which further exacerbates their health problems. The closest health
center is in Linaca Centro, which is a 1-hour walk from Coyol de Linaca. It is not
consistently staffed nor stocked with an adequate supply of medicine. In regards to
education, the closest secondary school is located in Linaca Centro as well; school is
only offered until 6th grade in Coyol de Linaca. Many students consequently leave
school and begin working to support their families after completing 6th grade. Like
their parents, they often work in agriculture, raising corn and beans for subsistence.
Others cut sugar cane on nearby sugar plantations during the harvest, which is then
sold to a sugarcane processing factory. Others also work as mechanics, welders, or
watchmen for banks in Choluteca, and still others work in the shrimp packing
industry.
El Coyol de Linaca's Water Challenge
El Coyol de Linaca currently has a running water system, but it is only supplying water to approximately 35 houses in the community, it is not large enough to meet the community’s needs. The system utilizes a water spring situated 2 kilometers from the community. The spring water source only provides 3.04 gallons of water per minute in the early dry season. It consequently takes more than 21 hours to fill the 3,700 gallon storage tank serving the community. Thus, community members only have access to water for roughly four hours every other day. Without an adequate supply of water, community members must forgo many basic hygiene and sanitation practices that would protect their health. Yet, they still pay a water fee of 20 Lempiras or US $0.88 each month despite the subpar service. Further endangering their health, few community members consume treated water. There is no centralized treatment plan and the existing storage tank is not equipped with a chlorinator to treat the water prior to consuming it. Moreover, few families treat their water at home. They do not boil their water nor use any chemical solutions.
| Project Overview | |
| Beneficiaries | 800 |
| Volunteers | 32 |
| System Type |
Gravity |
| Projected Project Cost |
TBD |
| Pipes Needed |
TBD |
| Hours of Education |
N/A |
| Storage Tank Volume |
|
| Additional Information |
| General Community Profile |
| Water Project Final Report |
Water System Design in El Coyol de Linaca
In order to ensure that all community members have access to an adequate supply of clean water, Global Brigades is planning on building a new water system in El Coyol de Linaca. Technicians recognized that they needed to locate a source providing at least 15 gallons of water per minute in order to meet demand. As there wasn’t one available, they decided to use two sources. Water from both sources will then be funneled to a large cistern, where it will be collected before being propelled by a pump to the chlorination tank that is located above the highest house of the community. Once in the chlorination tank, the water will be treated by a drip system before it enters the distribution network and flows through it to each family’s tap. The entire system will include two water collection systems, a cistern, a chlorination tank, a pump, approximately ten kilometers of piping, and 120 faucets once completed. As planned, it will provide approximately 800 people with an adequate supply of potable water. It will continue to do so for at least 20 years if population growth rates do not change dramatically. The seven members of the new Water Council will be trained on water treatment and system maintenance, administration, and operation. The community plumber will be trained on the same topics, so they can continue adequately managing the water system. Upon completion, the community will establish a monthly water tariff in order to pay the Water Council for water treatment, maintenance costs, and system sustainability. A Basic Sanitation Committee consisting of community volunteers will also be established and trained to help present educational workshops in the school to teach children about water and health-related topics.
| Engineering Brigades Chapters that Worked in Los Hatillos |
||
| Engineering Brigades Chapter | Month | Volunteers |
| UC Irvine | March 2014 | 15 |
| Team #1 Summer Interns | July 2014 | 4 |
| Saint Louis University & University of Missouri | January 2016 | 13 |
Current Status
Complete
The design of the community has been completed. The next steps will be to start construction and implementation of the water project.
Visit Other Programs in El Coyol de Linaca
Global Brigades strives to implement a model of Holistic Development in communities through a system of collectively implementing health, economic, and education initiatives to strategically meet a community's development goals. Learn more about the other programs being implemented in El Coyol de Linaca:
Medical 
Dental 
Water 
Public Health 
Business