In a War Against Leaks

Osmel Almaguer

HAVANA TIMES — The landscaping could easily be that of any one of the many green spaces that often adorn our city. The sparkling water could be a river, a small pond or something of that sort. But it’s not.

Rather, it’s a flood of sewage waste caused by a leak.

This discharge, which was recently tapped in zone 24 of the Alamar neighborhood, lasted for only a few days. Its central location forced the authorities to act quickly. However we’re not always so lucky when it comes to these failures. Usually it takes weeks, months or even years before repair work begins.

Over the last several days I’ve been troubled by the existence of several leaks and pools of water in several parts of the capital. Sometimes these aren’t so centrally located, so I guess they’ll be more difficult for the utility company to prioritize for repairs.

In these cases it’s necessary for residents to report these problems, especially because what’s at stake are the lives of our children.

Each of these “pools” — some so deep you could swim in them — is a danger not only in relation to that contagious disease transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, but also because of the plagues and bacteria that can develop in such filthy water.

From the middle of last decade’s “Energy Revolution,” I recall that water too represents energy, and that it would be intelligent to tackle the problems of our water supply, drainage, sewerage, and other aspects of leaking water present in our country.

Statistics broadcast by the media alerted us to the fact that about half the water pumped here in the Cuban capital doesn’t reach its destination because of leaks.

They say that water is life, and if that’s the case then life is trickling away. But water is also money, because it costs a lot to process and pump it. So how many millions are there of us who say we haven’t been squandering water in recent years?