3 October, 2025
By Fernando Díaz, Incatema’s Infrastructure Director.
The Inter-American Water Day has been celebrated every first Saturday of October since 1993. This is an event promoted by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the Inter-American Association of Sanitary and Environmental Engineering (AIDIS) and the Caribbean Water and Wastewater Association (CWWA), with the aim of raising public awareness of the importance of caring for this vital resource. Drinking water is synonymous with health, well-being and sustainable development, and guaranteeing access to it is a common challenge for all countries in the region.
To contribute to this goal, Incatema has been working in the Americas since 2011, when it has built its first drinking water treatment plant in the Americas in the town of Ouanaminthe, Haiti.
Guaranteeing access to drinking water is also one of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, to which drinking water treatment plants (DWTP), such as the one that Incatema will complete this year in Navarrete, Dominican Republic, contribute.
A DWTP is a facility designed to transform water from rivers, reservoirs or aquifers into water safe for human consumption. Through processes such as filtration, decanting and disinfection, a DWTP removes physical, chemical and microbiological impurities, ensuring that the water meets international drinking water standards. These plants are fundamental not only for public health, but also for economic development, since a safe and constant supply of drinking water guarantees the well-being of communities and the sustainability of cities.
The Navarrete DWTP includes a rapid filtration system with a capacity to treat 1,260 m3 per hour. The infrastructure will address current service deficiencies and expand supply capacity to meet population growth in the area.
The DWTP is part of a larger project aimed at rehabilitating the current drinking water supply system that supplies seven towns in the Dominican province of Santiago, through the remodelling and expansion of the Sabana-Navarrete aqueduct, in service since 1987.
Water: a shared commitment
The Inter-American Water Day reminds us that aims at ensuring safe drinking water is not only a technical issue, but also a social and environmental commitment. Investments in projects such as the Drinking Water Treatment Plants demonstrate that, with planning and innovation, it is possible to transform the lives of thousands of people, reinforcing the idea that water is a human right and a heritage that we must protect together.