Water supply and sanitation coverage in Honduras is still characterized by poor service quality and poor efficiency in many places. Coverage gaps still remain, particularly in rural areas.

The instrument used to prioritize these communities among the rest was a base line study conducted by PWW and approved by UNICEF, data from the health representative in Trojes, plus the expressed need and well organized board of these 3 communities to solve their water contamination.

In these 3 communities selected, some families use a hose as conduct to transport their water directly from the river source to their houses without treatment for human consumption. Some of the families use containers to collect their water from the nearest water source.

Very few of the homes have a pit latrine and these existing latrines are in poor conditions. There is no denying that safe water supply is a very important component in the overall strategy for achievement of health goals; but the rewards can be fully reaped only if sanitation keeps pace with water treatment.

Of the few latrines we found consisted of a single pit latrine with a wood seat placed directly over it adding to the bad odors emissions. The life span of these latrines is a maximum of 4 years and when the pit is filled, the latrines are abandoned and people go back to open field defecation and the old latrine become a focus of contamination.

PWW staff must always will have communication channels with all stakeholders in the area in order to:

• Avoid conflicts or duplicate efforts ( if another NGO is working on water, hygiene and sanitation there has to be an agreement between NGOs on which community each would attend always thinking of what is best for the community.
• Form alliances and share ideas; always have an open mind to learn new ways of improving project implementation. Local Health institutions and community health guardians will always be in the area PWW will work closely with them so they would be empowered and informed at all times of the project implementation and they help with project follow up.

Water is tested using the membrane filtration method to determine Escherichia coli counts at the source prior to the installation of the filters, and we do follow up monitoring testing the output water of the filters of to obtain a confidence level obtain a 95 % of the filter function. A demonstration house which will be used to show an example of how to maintain a hygienically safe environment in the household the function, capability, use and maintenance of the filter to the rest of the community

House hold water treatment: The method that PWW is going to use for water treatment is the BioSand Filters which are constructed from concrete; then filled with gravel and sand which are layered inside the filter with a PVC collection pipe situated at the base of the filter.

Contaminated water is poured through the top of the filter and passes through a plate that diffuses the stream and blocks large contaminants (e.g. stones, large twigs, leaves).The top few centimeters of the sand trap the bulk of micro-organisms, which accumulate and develop into a highly active food chain, called the Biological Layer or Schmutzdecke.

The pour and flush latrine consists of a toilet and with a water seal trap, set in a cement concrete floor. After use it is flushed by hand using a small container holding about 1.5 to 2 liters of water. The excreta are carried through a pipe or drain into two honeycomb leach pits, which are used alternately. The liquid in the pits percolates into the sub-soil and gases are absorbed by the soil, leaving the solids behind. Each pit is designed to last for about three years before it gets filled; when one is filled, it is taken out of use and excreta are then diverted to the second pit. When the filled pit is left for about two years, the contents turn into rich organic humus which is safe handling.

The latrines superstructure will be constructed out of adobe each beneficiary will make their own adobe bricks. They will also be in charge of the pit excavation and of providing local material. The project will provide the rest of the material such as cement for pit leads and latrine base, toilet seat, pvc pipes, aluzinc is the material that is going to be used for the door and the roof.

With proper disposal of human excreta by this method, diseases can be brought under control and the entire sanitation situation of the communities can be improved. Without proper sanitation the full health benefits of providing safe water supply are not achieved.
This method offers a long-term and appropriate solution for excreta disposal. This system will result not only in the relief of insanitary conditions but will also eliminate insect and fly breeding due to open defecation, as well as minimizing hookworm and other infestations which reduce human productivity

It been observed that all pathogens will die off in a period of about two years and thereafter the cleaning operations can be organized depending upon the weather conditions and demand for humus. A minimum storage capacity of three years has been suggested for the leach pits to facilitate cleaning operations.

This project will be completed in one phase.

Community agent training:
PWW staff will train, 1 person per 10 filters installed, to be a community agent. They will be selected by the community leaders, and their volunteer job consists of keeping record of the filters function, filling a monitoring format provided by the project staff and to report to PWW staff. The feedback they provide will be the most valuable asset of the project. The main objective of this training will be building local capacity of community agents to support total behavior change in use of filter, latrine, hygiene and sanitation. To achieve this we have designed a curriculum that contains facilitator’s notes, and tools. After this training, community agents will help support village-level hygiene and sanitation improvement activities

Trainings for Children
The objective of this step is to engage school children and teachers as change agents. PWW will establish a hygiene and sanitation club or strengthen and streamline existing school clubs to develop a capacity development program. These clubs will train school children in hygiene and sanitation and enhance their involvement as change agents in their respective households and communities

The subjects or lesson planned for this training will be suitable for children between the ages of 5 and fourteen, the age at which most children complete their primary education. The training will consist of participatory methods and tools which help young children to engage in and benefit including gender empowerment. Staff will conduct and evaluation before and at the end of each training.

Trainings for Community
The community agents will be in charge of organizing the hygiene and sanitation 8 hour training the first day and then house hold reinforcement during house visits for the first 5 months for adults in the community the groups of participants will have no more than 20 people at a time. The people who attend training will be prioritized for project implementation but also in behavioral change towards hygiene habits. To engage the families all the adults are going to be trained in how to process of making a latrine and giving maintenance to both the bio sand filter and latrine.

Community Organization
The community members are the ones who demanded the project. They have been involved in the planning process from the very beginning. All though the criteria used to select these 3 communities and not others that have almost the same need we considered the mortality rate due to diarrhea cases. As such, they know their needs and are committed to seeing them through. They have organized health committees for project implementation and are willing to contribute to the project in cash and labor.

This will be done by partnering directly with the Health Centers, Secretary of Health, Municipality, Education District and local NGOs over time to enhance their skills, and thereby strengthen the District capacity as a whole to effectively contribute to development work and increase overall project activities.

A parasite treatment campaign to treat 662 people and also we have incorporated an environmental protection (water shed protection) trainings for adults and children in both of the communities.
Interchange of experiences between community agents to discussed lesson learned and project follow-up.

Capacity building jobs and skill enhancement are also integral pieces of this program, the members of the family will learn about latrine construction and maintenance.

These communities are located in Trojes, Honduras which has been identified by UNICEF as one of the poorest regions in Honduras. Many of these communities lack the infrastructure, jobs, clean water, and proper hygiene and sanitation thus causing much sickness du to water borne diseases.