Alleviating Water Scarcity in Cuba

By Carlos Lopez Vazquez 13 August, 2014

Project Manager Dr. Vazquez reviews how 'Mas Agua Para Todos' is working to alleviate Cuba's water scarcity

Due to the deleterious effects of climate change (such as uneven distribution of precipitation & higher evaporation rates), water scarcity is becoming an ever-increasing problem in the near future in both high- & low-income countries. The problem exacerbates when considering the increasing population growth & rapid urbanization. The availability of water in the required & appropriate quantity and quality is of vital importance for development, to reduce poverty, to secure the well-being & health of the inhabitants and towards achieving food security.

Cuba’s challenges in the face of increasing water security

Cuba is particularly vulnerable to climate change effects, water scarcity is one of the most important factors

Because of its geographical location, topography and insular character, Cuba is particularly vulnerable to climate change effects, where water scarcity is one of the most important factors affecting and limiting the access of the population to safe and continuous water supply, jeopardizing not only basic human needs (like  appropriate sanitation) and economic activities (tourism) but also the food production sector¹ (such as the agroindustry and agriculture considered among the most water consuming productive activities).

water availability per capita in Cuba reaches 1220 m³/year

In the last years, lower precipitation levels have led to a lower availability and storage of fresh water in surface water bodies of around 3.0 billion m³ which corresponds to about 43.1% of the total capacity² estimated by the local government in 6.5 billion m³ per year. Thus, water availability per capita in Cuba reaches 1220 m³/year which is lower than the minimum desirable of 1500 m³/hab.year established by UN for the satisfaction of the water needs of the population, underlining the importance of adopting and implementing efficient water management practices and a stricter water consumption.

Although 93% of the population has access to drinking water ; 55% of the water supplied is lost to leaks

As a consequence of water scarcity and despite that 93% of the population is served by drinking water sources (98% in urban areas and 82% in rural regions), the time and access to the service is variable and therefore up to 79% of the population has intermittent access to water supply (in an average of 12 hours per day)³, which may not meet the corresponding standards for direct human consumption and use.
Special attention deserves the obsolete water supply network (80% of the mains and distribution pipes are older than 40 years). Thus, despite that the average water supply per inhabitant in Cuba is estimated in about 604 litres per day⁴ about 55% of the water supplied is lost to leaks within the distribution system⁵.

In the tourism sector, water consumption per tourist can be up to 1,000 litres/day

In the tourism sector, an important economic activity in the last decade, a water consumption of up to 1,000 litres/day per tourist is applied in practice. Furthermore, the limited water precipitation and reduced water storage capacity (as consequence of the topographical features of the island) makes the water resources of Cuba susceptible to saltwater intrusion, an increasing problem due to the overexploitation of groundwater sources.
On the other hand, wastewater treatment is rather limited in Cuba, while wastewater collection reaches 98% coverage, only 19% of generated wastewater receives certain treatment before its discharged into surface water bodies⁶ which severely affects primary fresh water resources (e.g. potential hydraulic interaction between Almendares River & Vento Aquifer which serves as a potential hydraulic connection to the drinking supply of the City of Havana).
Overall, water scarcity problems in Cuba are severely affected by (i) lack of alternative water sources in adequate quality and quantity to match the increasing demand for human and productive activities, (ii) obsolete and inefficient water supply network, and (iii) lack of appropriate wastewater treatment which limits any possible reuse.

Water scarcity alleviation strategies

One of the project objectives is to contribute to alleviate the water scarcity issue in Cuba through the introduction of innovative practices, including decreasing the demand for freshwater, encouraging wastewater reuse, and use of seawater as secondary quality water in the urban environment.

… decreasing the demand for freshwater, encouraging wastewater reuse, and use of seawater as secondary quality water for urban use are methods used to alleviate water scarcity in Cuba

The project is looking at introducing seawater toilet flushing practices, like the one developed by the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST).
Another practice the project is looking at is the Sulphate Reduction, Autotrophic Denitrification and Nitrification Integrated (SANI) process for sewage treatment developed by Prof Guanghao Chen of HKUST. “Leveraging Hong Kong’s unique seawater flushing system, we have developed a novel, energy-efficient and low carbon sewage treatment technology. The SANI process can eliminate 90% of sewage sludge production, and reduce sewage treatment costs by 50%, space requirements by over 50%, and cut down greenhouse gas emissions by 35%”, says Chen.
Another area is wastewater treatment & reuse. The SANI process is also being considered for applications in wastewater treatment. Other wastewater practices include onsite wastewater reuse for irrigation.

Pilot systems to be tested in Varadero – popular tourist destination