Asistencia técnica de la Organización Panamericana de la Salud en materia de abastecimiento de agua

Abstract

The water supply service of a community may be compared to a home-delivery service of any product or merchandise; it will vary in the amount the consumer requires and will be of proven quality, which calls for the use of very strict industrial processes. The function of the service does not end with the provision of the product, because the consumer sometimes keeps less than 1 percent of it and the rest is disposed of after use. In order to meet the goals of the Allinace for Progress it will be necessary in the next ten years to supply drinking water services to some 10,000,000 inhabitants every year. Among the difficulties to be taken into account, mention must be made of the population distribution since the samller the inhabitated areas, the greater the number of water systems needed. When we talk about a water supply system being impossible, it should be borne in mind that it is not a technical impossibility we are talking about but financial impossibility. The function of the engineer consists in finding the best solution, not simply any solution, and this solution always depends on the most complete knowledge possible of all the factors involved. Original solutions and research are continually called for. The technical advisory services of the Pan American Health Organization should be directed primarily at preparing and training as many local professional personnel as possible