With the 31 projects and initiatives that the Jalisco government will undertake to improve water quality in the Guadalajara Metropolitan Area (AMG) and revitalize the Intermunicipal System of Potable Water and Sewerage (SIAPA), it is estimated that 3.15 million residents of the metropolitan area will see improvements in the service they receive.
Some projects have already begun, and results could be seen in the coming weeks in the 200 neighborhoods that receive contaminated water, the state government’s Chief of Staff, Alberto Esquer Gutiérrez, stated in an interview.
The Comprehensive Strategic Water Plan, as the government strategy is called, includes 15 actions to improve water quality, four for supply, seven for sanitation, and five for flood mitigation and sinkhole repair.
The immediate implementation projects have a budget of five billion pesos and include, among others, the modernization and expansion of Water Treatment Plant No. 1 in Miravalle.
Water treatment plants will be modernized and the water supply reinforced.
At this 70-year-old complex, the goal is to reduce costs in water treatment, maintenance, and energy; increase the current treatment capacity to 2,500 liters per second with the new pumping station, which is currently under construction. Greater operational continuity is also expected.
Meanwhile, at the La Calera System, a pumping station will be built to supply water to Water Treatment Plant No. 5 in Los Agaves, Tlajomulco. The water will flow through the Calera Aqueduct, and the goal is to achieve a flow rate of 2,500 liters per second.
Sanitation and pollution control works will also be carried out.
This initial funding also includes the construction of a collector in Villa Fontana, also in the municipality of Tlajomulco. According to the State Government, the benefits of this project include controlling wastewater discharges from the neighborhoods of La Sauceda, Villa Fontana, and Santa Cruz del Valle; Reduction of pollution in the Las Pintas and Arroyo Seco canals and restoration of the hydraulic area of the Arroyo Seco infrastructure.
They seek to invest another 20 billion pesos with federal and private support.
The plan includes an additional 20 billion pesos, which requires federal validation and approval from the Jalisco Congress. It also expects to include a Construction, Maintenance, Rehabilitation, and Operation (CMRO) financial model, combining private sector participation with public funds.
With this, the Chapala-Guadalajara Replacement Aqueduct will be built, which will have a pumping station in the lake basin, a surge tank, a pressure-change tank, and a delivery tank.
The goals are to improve the quality of water reaching the metropolitan area, increase the efficiency of water extraction and conveyance, reduce treatment, maintenance, and energy costs, and guarantee water security.
Wells, aqueducts, and distribution networks will be rehabilitated.
In addition, Water Treatment Plant No. 3 in San Gaspar and No. 1 in Miravalle will undergo modernization and expansion, while the Los Agaves Plant will also be expanded. These projects are part of the water treatment initiatives of the Comprehensive Strategic Water Plan.
Likewise, Esquer Gutiérrez indicated that the actions include well rehabilitation, an energy efficiency plan, work on the Calderón Dam aqueducts, and the expansion and modernization of infrastructure in Río Blanco, Agua Prieta, Oriente, and Vado Coyula. Work on distribution networks, maintenance of the old water supply system for the Guadalajara Metropolitan Area (AMG), and cleaning of backwash and washing tanks are also planned.
He added that they are carrying out aquifer recharge and stormwater management projects. “Governor Lemus instructed us to begin the works immediately, the tasks and work immediately. We expect to see results very soon in the neighborhoods with the most problems […].
“We are committed to resolving the issue (of poor water quality) in the coming weeks and months,” the official stated.
Source: informador
