Problems
Juan Díaz River is an essential waterway in Panama that flows through several communities and eventually drains into the Pacific Ocean. The Juan Diaz River is 28 km long, but with its many tributaries, it has a catchment area of 150 km2 and is home to about 650,000 people. It is heavily populated in the middle part and is experiencing aggressive urbanization in the upper part of the basin. The lower basin includes a large part of the Bahia de Panama wetlands protected by the Ramsar Convention but also faces pressure from urbanization. The waterway is home to lizards, turtles, and birds that live in its mangroves.
Causes of water pollution Juan Díaz River
Although the Juan Díaz River is heavily polluted, it remains an integral part of the mangrove ecosystem. It leads out to the biodiverse Panama Bay, where nearly 1,000 humpback whales come to nurse their young each year. Unfortunately, like many rivers worldwide, Juan Díaz River has been subject to various forms of pollution, including industrial waste, untreated sewage, and agricultural runoff. Industrial waste is one of the primary sources of pollution in the Juan Díaz River is industrial waste. Many factories and manufacturing plants near the river discharge their waste directly into the water without proper treatment, which can cause environmental and health problems for the people and wildlife that rely on the river. Another significant source of pollution is untreated sewage. Many homes and businesses in the communities surrounding the river lack proper wastewater treatment facilities, leading to the discharge of raw sewage into the river. It creates an unpleasant odor and visual blight. Still, it can also spread harmful pathogens and bacteria, posing a health risk to those who come into contact with the contaminated water. Agricultural runoff is also a significant contributor to water pollution in the Juan Díaz River. Pesticides and fertilizers used in farming operations can leach into the soil and eventually enter the river, contaminating the water and harming aquatic life. Additionally, erosion caused by agricultural practices can lead to sedimentation in the river, which can further degrade water quality. Overall, water pollution in the Juan Díaz River is a serious problem.
Solutions
The trash-collecting, installed by NGO Marea Verde, traps trash while it floats down the Juan Diaz River.
Author: Marea Verde
Marea Verde, a nonprofit group, installed the water wheel system, the first of its kind in Latin America. The wheel is located in the Juan Díaz River, one of the most polluted rivers in Panama. According to project partner Clean Currents Coalition, Panama's Juan Díaz River and six other essential rivers in Panama move over 100,000 tons of trash annually into Panama Bay. Juan Díaz River is especially vulnerable to pollution because of its location through Panama City, poor waste management and extensive real estate development. A trash-collecting wheel is cleaning up pollution from the Juan Díaz River in Panama before it goes to the ocean. The wheel Wanda Díaz, is powered with hydraulic and solar power and also uses a camera system and artificial intelligence to analyze waste and provide data for public education and policy. The organization also hopes that Wanda Díaz and similar projects will convince consumers to rely less on single-use plastics.
Source: https://www.ecowatch.com/renewable-energy-powered-wheel-trash-panama.html
Gallery
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Timelines
2022
September
The Wanda Díaz device has collected over 22 1.3-cubic-meter bags of plastic bottles. The device’s camera system also contained images of the waste, analyzing and categorizing the data for educational use and influencing policies for waste management.
July
The quarterly biophysical measurements were completed in three locations: the upper watershed, the middle, and the lower basin, focused on ten different parameters. It is the first systematic measurement of the watershed incorporating the different watershed sections. Many of the findings were confirmed in the results—water quality decreases as the river reaches its lower basin, where the results indicate the quality is critical. Microplastics were found in all three site samples. In the upper and middle basins, 11 and 14 groups of taxa of macroinvertebrates were present, which are positive biological indicators of water quality. In the lower basin, only three taxa were present.
2021
The Ministry of the Environment guided the Juan Diaz River after receiving a citizen complaint filed by residents of the Jesús de Nazareno area in Pedregal about the alleged dark coloration and dead fish. Officials from the Environmental Performance Audit Office and the Panama Metropolitan Regional Office, accompanied by members of the National Police, made a field trip along the riverbed, starting from the Jesus de Nazareno area. According to the submitted technical report, during the tour, it was found that the waters of the Juan Diaz River were very turbid but odorless, and trim dead fish were also observed.
2019
Before the coronavirus pandemic struck, the Marea Verde, a nonprofit group, rolled out its "Barrier or Trash" technology. This floating device trapped over 100 tonnes of waste in the Matias Hernandez River. Marea Verde projects have slowed trash spread across Panama's rivers and coastlines.