Wednesday in Bogota: Discovering many possibilities for partnership

From Kate Woodward:

19 February

Today I spent the day with Padre Ted. Although the only plan I had was to meet with Padre Javier to discuss irrigation, I had the most pleasant opportunity to get to know Ted, and Wilson (Ted’s dog) as well.

I came to Grace after Ted had already gone and other than when he came to Grace for visits, I didn't have a dedicated time to get to know him. I feel it was a blessing as he is committed to his work here.

After lunch, Ted and I met with Padre Javier, who it turns out is also a PhD student, a human rights lawyer, and the priest for the community in Facativo (“Faca” for short). Faca is a small, rural community of very poor people outside of Bogota. Padre Javier is trying to use the land belonging to the church to start a community farm that will provide not only food for the people, but a sustainable income for the community. One of the crops that would provide income is a tree called a “tomato tree.” Ted described it as an apple tree that has a tomato-like fruit instead of apples. The Colombians make a juice of the fruit that they love to drink.  If the community could grow the trees and sell the fruit, they could have the income, but they require water. The church land currently does not have sufficient water to sustain agriculture, except for potatoes and other vegetables that require less water.

It seemed strange that there wasn't enough water since on either side of the church land were farms that appeared to be doing well. We started by talking about things like how much rain was received, where was the water table, and other things engineers need to know.

We then started discussing several of the traditional water supply options that might be available. Unfortunately, trying to dig a well using a drill rig was not going to work. A drill rig couldn't get to the site for a reasonable amount of money (I saw pictures of the bishop’s truck stuck trying to get to the church). The aqueduct that provides water to the neighbors’ farm was too far away to construct a spur.

During this discussion, I realized that although it might appear logical to assume that water could be found near the surface of the valley, the aquifer had probably shifted over geologic time. If we could determine where the aquifer layers were by looking at geologic maps, we might be more successful at finding possible locations for digging a well. Water could then be pumped (yes, they have electricity!) to tanks for storage and then gravity feed to the farm.

Now you might wonder how we would dig a well without a drill rig. Ted has a group that he is forming from within the Bogota area that he is going to use to possibly dig trenches for laying pipe for the water. They could dig the well—relatively free labor.

A plan was coming together!

We decided to start with providing water for the tomato trees. This could provide a source of income for the community, along with hope and a sense of purpose. I will go back to Boston and find geologic maps so that we can locate possible locations for the well. I suggested that we might confirm the locations using a technology like ground penetrating radar, since we could bring that to the site. We will coordinate with Ted, who will take care of figuring out the costs involved and coordinate the activities in preparation for the August date.

Padre Javier seemed truly happy that there was at least a plan to help his community get the irrigation water it needs.

And yes, Wilson is a sweet puppy who provides a friend for Ted to come home to.