UTAH, April 25, 2021 (Gephardt Daily) — The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has shared information about its ongoing effort to help bring clean water to the Navajo Nation.
An effort to bring clean, running water to the Navajo Nation is underway in the Southwestern United States. Latter-day Saint Charities, the humanitarian arm of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is supporting the nonprofit organization DigDeep to bring water into homes that lack basic indoor plumbing in remote areas of the reservation in New Mexico, Utah and Arizona, says a statement released by the Church.
“We recognize that there are certain human conditions or basic needs that need to be met for an individual to grow and fulfill their divine purpose. Water is one of those basic needs,” said Julie Ramos, manager of the Clean Water Initiative for Latter-day Saint Charities.
Pandemic Impact
Robbins believes it may be September before it is safe to go back into homes on the reservation.
DigDeep has been working with tribal leaders and agencies to identify high-risk residents who are eligible to receive the temporary outdoor water systems, including Navajo elders.
“It’s so important that we are taking care of our elders during this time,” said Robbins, who is Navajo. “As a keeper of our culture, of our language and our traditions, when we lose an elder, we lose libraries of culture and libraries of knowledge.”
Much of the work on the reservation is done by DigDeep’s team, which consists of about 20 employees who are mostly Navajo.
“Our staff does everything. They are very skilled, and it is just amazing because another part of our project is making sure that we are giving people job skills,” said Robbins.
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- Installation of additional home water systems for 20 families
- Purchase and distribution of several hundred 275-gallon water storage tanks to provide intermediate assistance during the pandemic.
- Water services for the Whitehorse Lake Chapter through distribution via purchase of a water tanker truck
- Research and education to quantify the economic return for investments in water and sanitation interventions and to build a learning cohort to further develop the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) sector in the U.S.
In 2020, the Church’s clean water initiative supported water projects in 23 countries, assisting nearly 600,000 individuals.
Ramos hopes that, through the Church’s involvement with DigDeep, Latter-day Saint Charities will be able to help provide running water not only in the homes of families in the Navajo Nation but also to those all across the country who lack access to running water and basic plumbing — bringing water equality to all.
“It has been amazing because (Latter-day Saint Charities) really stepped up and helped us out financially and helped us spread the word,” said Robbins. “They are always like, ‘hey, what do you need, how can we help?’
“Spreading the word is so important because there are so many ways that people can help, and it just starts with that one little spark of knowledge,” she added.
DigDeep’s first water projects were in Cameroon and South Sudan, but the work was brought to the United States when they discovered that there were needs within the organization’s home country.
“We started out in the Navajo Nation and that was our only project,” said Robbins. DigDeep is also starting projects in Appalachia, in the Eastern part of the country (West Virginia and Kentucky), and in colonias in the Rio Grande Valley, on the border of Texas and Mexico, with studies underway in other locations.
“I would say as a whole, in terms of getting the Navajo Nation water — whether it is DigDeep or other entities working together — they’re probably several decades down the road, but it is not impossible,” she said.
Water Poverty
“It is emotionally stunning to realize that here in the USA there are people who don’t have access to clean, running water,” said Lynn Whipple, region manager for the Church’s Welfare and Self-Reliance Services Department.
The Navajo Nation is one of the hardest-hit pockets of water poverty in the country, where 30% of homes have no running water and many lack electricity. Some families drive upwards of 40 miles every few days to haul water home for drinking, cooking and bathing while others are forced to rely on contaminated sources of water such as nearby ponds.
“It is deeply gratifying to unite the Church’s humanitarian resources with a group of qualified, capable, compassionate people, such as DigDeep, who are contributing tirelessly to an eventual solution,” said Whipple.
“As we help our brothers and sisters around the world — and in our own communities — with access to clean water, we help them unlock their potential and alleviate the burdens that are placed on them when they don’t have running water in their homes,” said Ramos.
The cost to bring hot and cold water to a home in the Navajo Nation is about $4,500 per household, which includes excavation, electrical equipment, materials and labor for the home water systems.
Every system is installed inside the home with the help of the homeowner, who is taught to maintain, repair and upgrade their system after installation is complete.
DigDeep, based in Los Angeles, started its water project in the Navajo Nation in 2014. To date, the Navajo Water Project has successfully provided hot and cold running water and solar power to 280 homes, benefitting more than 700 individuals in a dozen rural chapters in New Mexico, Utah and Arizona. Power is needed to run the water systems.
