Handling of wastewater and garbage in Colombia: a general view

Abstract

The water drain is a problem of how the hydric sources are organized and, therefore, it goes beyond the control that environmental authorities may have over the quality of water drains. To organize the hydric source implies to guarantee that users may have an easy access to it and that the required quantity and the minimum quality to fulfill the demand be available. To achieve this, the authorities should change the rules of the game that define how human beings use the water and how they interact with the environment. Decree 1594 of 1984 establishes, that a source organization plan should be developed for the generic disposal of the water, and that the problem is not only focused on the quality of the water drains, but on the conservation of the quality of the water bodies, which have a double function: to be the repository of waste water drains and to be a source of clean water. The related legislation has evolved only to cover the water punctual drains trough dealing with some compensation tariffs for two contaminants substances: biodegradable organic mass and suspended solids. This legislation does not cover the non punctual drains that are so important because of its high contribution to the pollution process, not only in the water bodies but in the soils drained by them