Ecobreves – GUATEMALA: GUATEMALAWater Without Chlorine

By IPS Correspondents and - - Reprint | | Print |

GUATEMALA CITY, Jul 17 2004 (IPS) - Water for human consumption is not chlorinated in 45 percent of the 331 municipal districts of Guatemala, according to a study by the National Association of Municipalities (ANAM). The chlorination service is subsidized in most cases, but ''the main problem is that many municipalities lack the budget for it,'' ANAM president José Coro told Tierramérica.

Coro, mayor of the central city of San José Pinula, stressed that water without chlorine is ''suitable for human consumption'' anyway, but the head of epidemiological oversight for the Health Ministry, Manuel Sagastume, said ''it is dangerous for the population to consume non-chlorinated water.''

''The risk of contracting diarrhea-related illness is high because of this,'' said Sagastume, adding that the ministry has found that 48 percent of cities and towns are supplying water that is contaminated.