Guatemala - Xapper and Tiactac 2005-2007
Fog Collection Evaluation Project

Current Status
FogQuest retains an interest in helping these poor villages with their water problems. The initial measurements made with the standard fog collectors (SFCs) did not indicate that sufficient water was available from fog collection to justify large collectors being built. When we have the funds and the opportunity we will examine other possible sites for the collectors. In the meantime, FogQuest has provided a 3200 L plastic tank for the storage of rainwater in Tiactac, which has been installed by the Fundación Ixtateca. There is the potential to collect and store rainwater in a more efficient manner in both villages and FogQuest retains an interest in helping with this as well. Melissa Rosato will be in Guatemala in August 2007 on another project and can look more into the possibilities at that time.

Background
During the field project at La Ventosa in May 2005, Virginia Carter went north of La Ventosa to examine several villages near San Mateo Ixtacán. This is where another NGO, Ixtatán Foundation (Fundación Ixtateca), under the guidance of Beth Neville Evans has been working with rural communities for several years. Virginia visited Xapper and Tiactac and found the water needs and the poverty both acute. People were walking for hours to access marginal water supplies for their families. FogQuest is presently discussing with Beth how we can work together to help the communities. This will begin with an evaluation using SFCs in the next few months. Xapper has about 300 people and is at an altitude of 2240 m. Tiactac has 110 people and is at 2565 m. Both villages have schools. Tiactac’s only available water source is spring called La Joya about 4 km away. Otherwise, both communities rely on what rainfall they can collect and store. This marginal water degrades in quality with storage time and is normally gone by the winter months.

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