Water The gravity flow water system in Huacaria was built in 1993 by a governmental development project. Engineers sourced the drinking water from a contaminated stream and directed it to a gravity flow distribution system. The system included filtration and disinfection tanks but the projected slow-sand filter was never installed, and chlorine was not added. There was no ongoing technical and maintenance training for the water committee due to funding cuts. Seventeen outdoor taps were installed but were cheaply built and concentrated in one small area that could service only eight of Huacaria's twenty-two households. The remaining households gathered their water in buckets from nearby streams. In 2003 the existing physical outdoor tap stands were unhygienic, and either broken or in need of maintenance. The greywater discharge from the taps passed out a drainage pipe to ground surfaces adjacent to houses and the school, creating muddy puddles and runoff streams of filthy, stagnant water. Several of the runoff streams would empty into larger streams, adding to the contamination levels of the surrounding water supplies. The highly contaminated larger rivers are frequently used by children and other community members for bathing and washing. Extensive water testing carried out in 2003 demonstrated that ALL water sources, local rivers and streams, including the taps, were contaminated by moderate to high levels of harmful, fecal coliform bacteria. There was no question that this water system represented a serious health risk to the entire community of Huacaria. In 2004 the gravity flow water system was completely renovated and expanded with water lines extended to each home throughout the community and to the schoolhouse. There is also a sturdy utility sink with an underground greywater drainage at each home and at the schoolhouse. Water flows CLEAN AND SAFE to each village home and the schoolhouse!