Guatemala faces substantial resource and institutional challenges in successfully managing its national water resources. Deforestation is increasing as the global demand for timber exerts pressure on the forests of Guatemala. Soil erosion, runoff, and sedimentation of surface water is a result of deforestation from development of urban centers, agriculture needs, and conflicting land and water use planning. Sectors within industry are also growing and the prevalence of untreated effluents entering waterways and aquifers has grown alongside.
Untreated wastewater contaminates water resources as well where treatment facilities are inadequate. Populations are unequally distributed and this creates challenges of conveyance. In a mountainous country this can easily be mitigated with gravity fed systems. Where water pumps are needed, water delivery is much more expensive and can be a barrier to consistent access.
Guatemala is also facing institutional challenges, mostly due to a lack of coordination among the different agencies responsible for water resources management where duplication of efforts and responsibility gaps exist. SEGEPLAN and the Secretaria de Recursos Hidraulicos de la Presidencia are other ministry level institutions that highlight possible overlaps in duties as both are within the office of the president and have water resources management responsibilities.
Guatemala has ample amounts of rainwater, surface and groundwater. While surface water is abundant, they are seasonal and often polluted. Groundwater from wells and springs is important to the national supply resource meeting demands for potable water for public and domestic needs. Groundwater is also used for the agricultural and industrial sectors as well. Hydroelectricity output is the key component (92%) of Guatemala's electricity generation and is highlighted by the Chixoy hydroelectric project. The National Institute of Electricity (INDE) (El Instituto Nacional de Electrificacion) oversees and implements hydroelectric projects in Guatemala.
Water resources management challenges Management of water resources in Guatemala is shared by several government agencies and institutions. Most of these agencies conduct their work with little or no coordination with other agencies, which creates duplication of work and inefficient use of resources. In addition, there is a need for the enactment of watershed management plans aimed at integrating different water uses, controlling deforestation and water quality.
Water resources in Guatemala are also stressed by domestic users. Generally, populations are larger in regions where water availability is low due to altitude or rainfall deficit, and the opposite is true in regions where water resources are abundant. Guatemala City is a prime example. The city is home to more than 20% (3.2 million) of the countries population. However, the valley where Guatemala City is located is in a south central region of the country and spans the Continental Divide. The location of Guatemala city near the continental divide is at the origin of all nearby rivers where flows are minimal. This equates to small quantities of surface water and inadequate groundwater sources that cannot fully supplement the needs of the city.
Water resource base The hydrographic system is divided into three primary drainage basins. First, the Pacific Ocean drainage basin covers 22% of the country and counts 18 watersheds. Some of the rivers in this zone transport volcanic sediments to be deposited along the coast and contributes to coastal flooding due to reduced depths of tidal marshes. Annual surface runoff in this basin is 25.5 km3. The Caribbean Sea drainage basin covers 31% of the country and has 10 watersheds. Average annual surface runoff in this basin is calculated at 31.9 km3. The Gulf of Mexico basin covers 47% of Guatemala and 10 watersheds. The rivers in this basin have the largest flows in the country and drain towards Mexico. Surface runoff in this basin is 43.3 km3.
Guatemala, as its (Mayan) name indicates, is a land of forests. The country is also mountainous and rainfall is influenced by Pacific and Atlantic Ocean weather patterns such as El Niño, La Niña, and hurricanes. The Caribbean Sea influences rainfall patterns in Guatemala in the same way. Average rainfall varies from 700 mm per year in the eastern regions of the country to around 1,000 mm in the central regions, and 5,000 mm of rainfall in the northeastern regions. The current population in the mountainous northwestern zone numbers around five million inhabitants and this region has high levels of rainfall (up to 4,000 mm per year) and steep slopes that are susceptible to erosion. This region is an area with great water potential, but also subject to irreversible damage from soil loss and the alteration of the water cycle.
Surface water and Groundwater resources Surface water covers about 1,000 km2 of the 108,900 km2 of land area across Guatemala. Although surface water resources are abundant, they are unequally distributed, highly seasonal, and generally polluted. Fresh ground water from wells and springs is an essential resource and a major source of potable water and used for agricultural, industrial, public, and domestic demand. Ground water is generally plentiful from sedimentary aquifers throughout the plains, valleys, and lowlands of the country.
The two most substantial aquifers are the Pacific Coastal Plain alluvium and the karstic and fractured limestone that extend beneath the Sierra de los Cuchumatanes, Sierra de Chama, and Peten Lowlands. Other more limited aquifers are important for small-scale local demands. The mountains and hills of Guatemala contain many other types of aquifers, including volcanic pyroclastic and lava deposits, low permeability sediments, igneous, and metamorphic aquifers. Alluvial plains, valleys and lowlands make up about 50% of the countries territory and contain about 70% of the available ground water reserves.
Major lakes and reservoirs
Guatemala has 23 major lakes and another 119 that all encompass an area of 950 km2. Storage capacity in up to half of the lakes in Guatemala is used solely for hydroelectric energy generation, and the volume of water is around 524 million m3. The Chixoy Hydroelectric Dam is the largest of the hydroelectric reservoirs, with an effective capacity of 275 MW; it supplies 15% of the country's electricity demand.
An important lake near Guatemala City is the once pristine Lake Amatitlán, which is long degraded from years of domestic and industrial dumping, and deforestation. Each year large quantities of untreated sewage, industrial effluent and around 500,000 tons of sediment are carried into Lake Amatitlán through the lake's primary inflow source, the Villalobos River, causing high levels of water pollution and an accelerated rate of eutrophication and siltation.
The lake is drained by the Michatoya River, a tributary of the María Linda River. The town of Amatitlán is located at the head of the Michatoya river. A dam with a railway on top was constructed at the narrowest point, thus effectively dividing the lake into two water bodies with different physical, chemical and biological characteristics. The lake is used as a water source for navigation and transportation, sightseeing and tourism, recreation, and fisheries.
The Lake Atitlán basin is a closed watershed or endorheic lake located in the volcanic highlands of Guatemala. This lake is the deepest lake in Central America, with estimated depths of at least 340 meters; however much of the lake has not been completely sounded for depth, therefore accurate capacity is not well understood. Competing uses place high demand on the waters of Lake Atitlán; and serious problems of water pollution, soil erosion, and forest loss are prevalent. In 1996 the Authority for the Sustainable Management of the Atitlán Basin (AMSCLAE) was established which produced a Master Plan in 2000. However, the plan is still under revision and only a few measures are actually being implemented.
Water quality and pollution Based on established biological and chemical standards, every water body in Guatemala is considered to be moderately if not critically contaminated. Upper aquifers in major urban areas are contaminated from a variety of sources. In Guatemala City, untreated storm water is injected into the upper aquifer to try to recharge the city's water supply. Leaching from the landfill in Guatemala City has also severely contaminated the local aquifers, and generally only deep confined aquifers should be considered safe from biological and chemical contamination.
Sewage from Guatemala City has caused the Villalobos and Las Vacas Rivers to be considered the most contaminated streams in the country. Additionally, biological contamination of shallow aquifers by pathogens due to the improper disposal of human or animal wastes is a problem in many populated and rural areas of the country. In agricultural areas, pesticides are a primary source of contamination. Chemical contamination results from the use of fertilizers and pesticides in the sugarcane and banana plantations of the Pacific and Caribbean coastal plains. Along both coasts are streams, marshes, and swamps that contain large quantities of brackish or saline water; and unless desalinated, these sources are unsuitable for most uses.
Water resources management by sector
Water coverage and usage Potable water demand in Guatemala is primarily met with surface water. In urban areas, 70% of their water is surface water while the figure rises to 90% in rural areas. The rest of the water needs are met with groundwater. Out of 329 municipalities, 66% of the water systems utilize gravity to deliver water, another 19% of the systems use pumps and about 15% of the systems use both gravity and pumps. Total annual demand in 2010 is about 835 million m3. About 95% of the total population has potable water coverage. Of this figure, only 75% actually have a house connections while the remainder will carry water from nearby wells, rivers, and other sources.
Water supply and sanitation Information below taken from: Water supply and sanitation in Guatemala
According to the WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation, access to water and sanitation services has slowly risen over the years in Guatemala. In 1990, 79% of the total population had access to improved water sources, while in 2004, 95% of the population had access. Sanitation coverage has also risen, from 58% of the total population having access to adequate sanitation in 1990, to 86% with access in 2004. The government of Guatemala estimates that the population without access to water services is growing at a rate of at least 100,000 people every year.Inter-American Development Bank. 2003. Guatemala Rural Water and Sanitation Program (GU-0150) Loan Proposal.
Irrigation and drainage For more information see: Historical background of Irrigation in Guatemala
Irrigation in Guatemala is concentrated in three regions of the country. The Atlantic coast region has low humidity and high evapotranspiration so irrigation is needed for the cultivation of bananas, tomatoes, watermelon, and tobacco. The high plains region has very little rain for much of the year and with fertile volcanic soils that do not retain moisture very well. Without irrigation, there is only one harvest per year so crops such as basic grains require irrigation. The lower coastal zones have irrigated sugarcane and banana plantations.
Irrigation in Guatemala is divided into three key types: i) private irrigation that is normally controlled by a family, company, or community agriculture system. Many of the private plantations are irrigated with gravity water systems; ii) state owned and operated irrigation programs and; iii) small-scale communal irrigation systems which normally are very efficient.