36
HEALTH AND SANITATION
First place winning essay
in IAPMO’s 2018 Annual
Scholarship Competition
In November 2017, IWSH Completed the Community
Plumbing Challenge (CPC) 2017 in Bekasi, West Java,
Indonesia. If you had to choose one location within the
United States to conduct the next CPC (providing safe
access to clean water and proper sanitation), which
location would you choose and why?
By Austin Stoltzfus
Lacking access to basic sanitation and clean
drinking water can affect an immense range of
issues in any established society. Located in parts
of New Mexico, Arizona and Utah, the Navajo
Nation continues to experience the living standards
of a developing state despite its location in the
United States.
Russ Chaney
In the spirit of the sharing of
unique experiences that shape
the plumbing industries in our
respective nations, this essay
won first place in IAPMO’s
2018 annual Scholarship
Essay Competition. First
introduced in 2009 and
open to members and their
children of IAPMO and many
of IAPMO’s industry partners,
the competition has elicited
entries from all over the world.
Written by Austin Stoltzfus of
Shippensburg University in
Pennsylvania, it is the next in a
regular series of similar articles
that will run in this magazine.
According to estimates by the Navajo Nation, nearly
30%, or 54 000 people, lack access to clean water
within their homes (EPA). The absence of clean water
acts as an economic burden as well as a catalyst
for disease in the Navajo Nation, and with little to no
representation, the population receives little support from
government funding.
Accessing water for most Americans is as simple as
turning on the tap. For many Navajo citizens, reaching
clean water can call for nearly a whole day’s work.
Verna Yazzie, a Navajo resident, routinely embarks on an
18-mile round trip to reach the only local watering hole.
For many Navajo residents, the scarcity of clean water
means travelling great distances just to be a functioning
member of society.
The time and resources spent to retrieve water for the
residents is one of several factors degrading the local
economy. As can be found in sub-Saharan Africa, the
chore of travelling to reach water can rob people of an
education and greatly limit economic opportunities. When
it’s broken down, more time spent travelling to retrieve
June 2019 Volume 25 I Number 4
water equals less time spent on education, weakening
the future workforce.
While there are non-profit organisations working
with the Navajo to improve conditions, more help is
needed at a much larger scale. According to Navajo
Water Resources Principle Hydrologist Jason John,
providing water for some Navajo homes could cost as
much as USD70 000 due to the rural location. Many
within the Navajo community stress the importance
of solving the issues while remaining self-reliant from
the US government. However, the Navajo population’s
high unemployment rate of about 48% makes this a
difficult task.
Diving deeper into this issue, the high unemployment
rate can be attributed to the deprived education in the
area. Only about 56% of the Navajo population attains
a high school diploma, and only about 7% are college
graduates. An uneducated workforce leaves the Navajo
people with few skilled tradesmen capable of resolving
the current water crisis. This forces them to rely on an
outside workforce, which is unreliable according to John.
“The challenge to a rural area is that it’s hard to bring
qualified people in because it’s not easy living out there in
a rural area. If you grew up in a large city, you’re used to
certain amenities and used to having the ability to access
housing, food and utilities. But to work on the Navajo
Nation, you have to be comfortable not having those
amenities you find in a larger city,” John told USNEWS.
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