Sowing, harvesting and reusing water for sustainability strategies. Project Code: PG13-PY24-07
Description
Location
Sketch
Information about lithology/geochemistry:
The "Manglaralto River-Aquifer System, Santa Elena (Ecuador)" is a Nature-Based Solution (NBS) designed for the recharge of the Manglaralto-free coastal aquifer. In 2017, an artisanal dam, known by the community as "tape", was built using gravel and sand from the fluvial deposit of the lower basin of the Manglaralto River. This dam has the function of damming water during periods of rain in the intermittent riverbed, favouring its infiltration for the recharge of the aquifer (sowing) and allowing its subsequent capture through dug wells (harvesting). This system provides fresh water to more than 20,000 inhabitants (a population that doubles during the beach tourism season) of the coastal communities of the Spondylus tourist route, supplied by 15 wells built with the support of the Manglaralto Regional Drinking Water Management Board (JAAPMAN) and CIPAT-ESPOL.
Main Description
- This demosite focuses on the sustainable management of the Manglaralto river basin. It uses a technical-artisanal dam for aquifer recharge and green filters for wastewater treatment to improve water security in a semi-arid coastal region.
- The project utilizes the intermittent Manglaralto River, employing an artisanal dam ("tape") to slow flow, enhance infiltration into the riverbed, and recharge the underlying coastal aquifer.
- The site addresses saline intrusion into the coastal aquifer. Interventions like the recharge dam help maintain freshwater levels, protecting adjacent coastal ecosystems from contamination and supporting local biodiversity.
Enhance ecohydrological processes in novel ecosystem
YES
Apply complementary Ecohydrological processes in high impacted system
YES
This table presents the different categories of ecosystem services that ecosystem can provide, divided in:
Provisioning Services are ecosystem services that describe the material or energy outputs from ecosystems. They include food, water and other resources.
Fresh water: Ecosystems play a vital role in the global hydrological cycle, as they regulate the flow and purification of water. Vegetation and forests influence the quantity of water available locally.
Regulating Services are the services that ecosystems provide by acting as regulators eg. regulating the quality of air and soil or by providing flood and disease control.
Waste-water treatment: Ecosystems such as wetlands filter both human and animal waste and act as a natural buffer to the surrounding environment. Through the biological activity of microorganisms in the soil, most waste is broken down. Thereby pathogens (disease causing microbes) are eliminated, and the level of nutrients and pollution is reduced.
Ecosystem services "that are necessary for the production of all other ecosystem services". These include services such as nutrient recycling, primary production and soil formation.
Habitats for species: Habitats provide everything that an individual plant or animal needs to survive: food; water; and shelter. Each ecosystem provides different habitats that can be essential for a species’ lifecycle. Migratory species including birds, fish, mammals and insects all depend upon different ecosystems during their movements.
Cultural Services corresponds nonmaterial benefits people obtain from ecosystems through spiritual enrichment, cognitive development, reflection, recreation, and aesthetic experiences.
Lifezones
Life zone
Tropical
Dry Scrub
PPT(mm/yr): 30.0
T(ºc): 22.0
| Elevation of demosite: | meters above sea level |
| Humidity: | Perhumid |
| PETr (by year): | 0.43 |
EH Principles
Quantification of the hydrological processes at catchment scale and mapping the impacts
Distribution of ecosystems and their relevant processes (ex: metabolism=water and nutrient uptake and retention; biomass production)
Ecological engineering (integration, dual regulation and biotechnologies in catchment scale for enhancement of ecological potential)
ECOHYDROLOGY ENGINEERING SOLUTIONS
Water retention and infiltration systems: The technical-artisanal dam was built using local materials, such as gravel and sand, with a concrete cover designed to retain water during the rainy season and improve infiltration and aquifer recharge.
Ecohydrological Infrastructure
The green filter uses plants (in this case, Guadua angustifolia) to remove nutrients and contaminants from wastewater. This process is a clear example of phytoremediation, a form of phytotechnology where plants absorb, accumulate, and degrade pollutants in water, soil, or air. The ability of Guadua angustifolia to assimilate nutrients and has an average removal of the Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD5) of 87.11%, while the removal of coliforms is 87.23%, at a depth of 90 cm. demonstrates.
Phytotechnology
The dam's design with a 4:1 (gentle) slope disperses the energy of the water, allowing the reduction of erosion, favouring the infiltration of water in the coastal aquifer and the existence of a transition zone for the development of habitats rich in biodiversity.
Hydrological Flow
Major Issues
Expected Outcomes
The main expected outcomes are ensuring a sustainable year-round freshwater supply for local communities, improving water quality, increasing biodiversity, enhancing resilience to climate change and saline intrusion, and fostering strong community participation in environmental management and education.
Latest Results
- The aquifer recharge system now supplies ~20,000 people. Green filters remove 80-90% of BOD5 and coliforms.
- Fifteen wells were established, with 14 active. Sensors monitor six wells, and the site is featured in international publications (e.g., doi.org/10.1016/j.rineng.2024.102599).
Contacts
Emily Nicole Sánchez Zambrano
- emnisanc@espol.edu.ec
- Manglaralto River-Aquifer System, Santa Elena (Ecuador), Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral (ESPOL)
Social ecohydrological system
EH Objectives
EH Methodology
Catchment Ecohydrological sub-system
Objectives
Stakeholders
Catchment Sociological sub-system
Activities