~ by Liz Bohne, E.I.T.
Global Water Stewardship is a non-profit organization that, by educating people and engineering sustainable centralized solutions that keep waterways clean and communities healthy, resolves sanitation issues in the developing world.
As any dedicated wastewater treatment engineer does when traveling, Global Water Stewardship founder, Mohammed Haque, asked on a visit to Costa Rica in 2013: “So, what do you do with your wastewater here?” The answer was sobering, particularly in light of the abundant natural beauty and environmental diversity for which Costa Rica is famous. There is just one conventional treatment plant in the country, located in San José.
Upon returning to the United States, Mohammed founded Global Water Stewardship (GWS), as a subcommittee of the Central States Water Environment Association (CSWEA). It is an organization of 1,300 wastewater treatment professionals from Illinois, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.
The communities Global Water Stewardship is working with are developing quickly, and will need updated waste management systems to keep the residents and the environment healthy.
Our organization, which includes wastewater professionals, provides the design and collaborates with local engineers, community members, and other stakeholders to make centralized systems a reality. Currently, we are working with the communities of Bahía Ballena, Piedras Blancas, and Dominical.
In Bahía Ballena, the centralized system will consist of collection pipes and an aeration lagoon for treatment that will be located in a secluded area. The collection system will carry wastewater underground to the treatment location, preventing water from ponding in trenches and reducing the spread of disease. Later, it will flow to a lift station which will pump it into the lagoon, where it will be treated through a biological process. Then, this water will exit through a pipe at the end of the lagoon, and will be discharged into the ocean.
