Autogestão de sistemas rurais de abastecimento de água: estudo de caso na comunidade quilombola de Lagedo, São Francisco - MG

Abstract

The current scenario for many residents of rural areas in Brazil is the consumption of water from surface water sources without treatment. In addition the inadequacy of the technical solutions available for the reality of rural communities is an aggravating factor. Despite the government's efforts and government agencies with regard to water supply, the adoption of inadequate public policies and the lack of planning to ensure the sustainability of actions, culminating in the failure of strategies for universal access. The proper management of water supply systems can be a key mechanism to combat the deficit history in rural areas, justifyingstudies of current management models in the country. In this sense this study through a case study in the quilombo rural community Lagedo in the municipality of San Francisco, in the northern state of Minas Gerais, aims to understand and relate to the technical and educational factors that can influence the community self-management for the supply of water. The basis for discussions about the viability of community management was obtained through techniques of quantitative and qualitative research. Diagnosis and assimilation of the local context through participatory methodologies is one of the stages of the study, others are the intervention and the organization of facilities management. The size of investigated data covered the water quality analysis, participant observation and the opinion of the residents. The use of clay filter with ceramic candles in the home has been discussed and has been stimulated in the community due to the good results observed in laboratory research of Federal University of Minas Gerais UFMG, owing its low cost and ease of use. As a result, it can be said that the field sampling showed the cultural acceptance of the filters by the locals, though current techniques used in Lagedo proved insufficient water purifiers consumed in homes. The identification and understanding of the role of the institutions responsible for water supply in Lagedo was central to the discussion and planning aimed atthe sustainability of the supply system in place, as the lack of external support and capacity building for water supply management is a the major problems facing the community. Finally it is pointed out that the search for universal access to water supply in rural areas of the country mainly points to the socio-communitarian organization and mobilization in the proposed projects.