What Can You Do?
For Yourself
Know Your Water
Ensure Your Drinking & Cooking Water is Safe
Our regional water supply is increasingly becoming plagued with excessive levels of arsenic and fluoride, two very difficult-to-remove water contaminants that are both on the World Health Organization’s list of the 10 chemicals of greatest public health concern. Fluoride accumulates in the brain and is linked to development and learning disabilities in children, destroys teeth, and weakens bones. Arsenic is linked to skin and gallbladder cancer, kidney disease, and development and learning disabilities. These issues not only affect hundreds of thousands in our watershed, but approximately 21 million in Mexico, and 200-300 million people globally.
How to Use Your Water
Is it safe to shower with arsenic and fluoride in my water? Can I eat vegetables irrigated with high levels of arsenic?
These are questions we receive often at Caminos de Agua. So, before understanding your water quality, it’s important to first understand the risks of arsenic and fluoride in the water. You’ll notice that this entire section is focused on water for drinking and cooking, or what we frequently call water for “human consumption.”
-
That’s because arsenic and fluoride are not easily absorbed through the skin. You can wash dishes and clothes and even bathe and shower with arsenic and fluoride contaminated water without concern. While arsenic specifically has shown to bioaccumulate in certain crops, we generally are not overly concerned with this issue given the levels of arsenic we have registered in this region and the current state of research on the matter.
In general, it’s important to remember that arsenic and fluoride are of most concern to public health when consumed. So, avoid drinking contaminated water as well as cooking with it as arsenic and fluoride are not boiled off in the cooking process, but instead are just concentrated further.
Private Water Testing
If you want to know the water quality specifically in your own home, we at Caminos de Agua offer private water testing for a small fee, which helps support our social programs and technical development projects, as well as allowing us to offer free water testing in low-income rural communities. Learn more about what we test for and our pricing by clicking the button below.
Install a Clean Water Solution
It’s important to understand that water quality can change quickly, especially in the urban center of San Miguel where water sources vary in quality and are frequently mixed with one another. Because of that, we in Caminos de Agua believe that if you live in this region, you should have a water solution that deals with arsenic and fluoride, even if you don’t currently have excessive levels of those contaminants in your water today. That can change.
-
Unfortunately, there is a lot of misinformation regarding the treatment options available for arsenic and fluoride. Very few of the commercially-available water treatment systems remove arsenic and fluoride. The great majority of these systems are designed to remove biological pathogens and improve taste but are not capable of removing chemical contaminants like arsenic and fluoride. In fact, popular options like “whole-house” water treatment systems (a combination of UV, sediment, and carbon), boiling water, adding chlorine, and even expensive point-of-use filters like Nikken and Berkey (popular in urban San Miguel), unfortunately can’t touch arsenic and fluoride, which are completely dissolved in the water.
There are very few commercially-available solutions able to deal with these contaminants. At Caminos de Agua, we recommend three possible solutions:
Rainwater Harvesting + Biological Treatment,
Reverse Osmosis Treatment Systems, or
Commercial Bottled Water (e.g. garrafones) from a reputable source.
You can learn more about each of these options in detail by reading our bulletin on drinking water solutions here.
By analyzing and disseminating water quality data and potential solutions, we've empowered thousands of residents to understand and evaluate the safety of their drinking water, fostering awareness and education about water quality in our region.
Make a donation.
Caminos de Agua is a nonprofit organization that creates access to clean drinking water through a unique, proven participatory and grassroots approach. Our projects currently provide clean water access to more than 50,000 people in the Upper Río Laja Watershed as well as throughout Mexico. Our goal is to reach 250,000 by 2030. Support our work by making a donation today.
Get in touch.
Interested in learning more about our work or collaborating with us? Whether you have questions, ideas, or simply want to chat, we’d love to hear from you! Reach out and join us in creating sustainable water solutions for our communities.