Building tank in Ocotal.jpg

Better infrastructure improves public health

Water

Circa 2025, families in El Rosario had been living for years without enough water, dirty water, and the stress of recognizing their community water system was in a rapid decline. Many months, women had a dribble of water at their single outdoor tap just a few hours a day.

In 2026, ACTS received a generous donation and allocated $26,000 to rehabilitating the water system. The money came from a donor in California committed to memorializing his sister’s work with poor people. We partnered with Agua Pura para el Mundo (Pure Water for the World), a Honduran NGO that provided expertise and oversight of construction. The community contributed hundreds of hours of labor and trained leaders to run a functional Junta de Agua (Water Board).

Today, for the first time ever, tap water is potable and leaders are running a well-organized utility.

In the current drought, the upgraded system has valves for sections and households so that the greatly reduced flow of water can be shared equitably.

On the other side of the catchment area, ACTS water engineers are just months away from completing a multi-year project in the community of Ocotal. This team has delivered many water projects in Honduras and without question, Ocotal is the most challenging. We are proud of their outstanding commitment to the community and persistence.

Latrines

ACTS has facilitated building hundreds of latrines over dozens of years. They are basic huts over hand-dug pits with concrete floors and a simple stool.

With a family latrine, human waste is concentrated in one selected location. It is safe, private, and affords dignity to the users.

Our system follows the advice of the Honduran Health & Development Committee about  locations where latrines are needed. Typically, they are for new homes or those where over time the pit has gotten full. ACTS provides the funding, and the family digs the pit and constructs the hut. The cost of materials is $200 per unit.

Roads

To get to El Rosario, we drive a blacktop road from San Pedro Sula for three hours into the mountains to a left turn onto a dirt road. From there, all roads are dirt, and their construction is rudimentary without ditching and subject to frequent washouts. Some extremely determined commercial drivers dare to very occasionally bring trucks into the area, but most consider it impassable by large vehicles. This limits economic growth.

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The water system in El Rosario was failing. A generous donation to ACTS allowed us to take on the project with community collaboration including 100s of hours of hard labor digging trenches and toting rocks.

The water system in El Rosario was failing. A generous donation to ACTS allowed us to take on the project with community collaboration including 100s of hours of hard labor digging trenches and toting rocks.

We are nearing the last phase of a long project to bring good water to each home in Ocotal. The project has benefited from significant corporate support – THANKS! Coping with extreme challenges in terrain, the team used their training and ingenuity t

We are nearing the last phase of a long project to bring good water to each home in Ocotal. The project has benefited from significant corporate support – THANKS! Coping with extreme challenges in terrain, the team used their training and ingenuity to get the job done. The village men hand dug literally miles of trench from the source to the neighborhoods.

Planting shade trees is a significant step in regenerative agriculture. In 2023, we brought a mix of 200 shade trees to El Rosario; some for planting at springs and some for shading houses.

Planting shade trees is a significant step in regenerative agriculture. In 2023, we brought a mix of 200 shade trees to El Rosario; some for planting at springs and some for shading houses.

In every community, the ‘junta de agua,’ or water board is a key group responsible for an increasingly scarce resource due to global warming. This is a typical meeting in El Rosario with an ACTS team and the junta de agua that was followed by a site

In every community, the ‘junta de agua,’ or water board is a key group responsible for an increasingly scarce resource due to global warming. This is a typical meeting in El Rosario with an ACTS team and the junta de agua that was followed by a site visit to the source and distribution tank.

The Mejia Fuente system continues at the bottom of the hill; runoff from the mid-point collection tank provides water at this roadside ‘pila,’ or sink, for use by livestock. The wood down the center keeps the cattle organized while they drink. Making

The Mejia Fuente system continues at the bottom of the hill; runoff from the mid-point collection tank provides water at this roadside ‘pila,’ or sink, for use by livestock. The wood down the center keeps the cattle organized while they drink. Making this roadside pila available means farmers do not have to walk their animals several miles to get water.

Here is the mid-point for the Mejia ‘fuente’ or spring where water piped from the wild spring is collected in this tank built by a motivated group of local volunteers. They use the water for their crops on this mountainside and even have a spigot up

Here is the mid-point for the Mejia ‘fuente’ or spring where water piped from the wild spring is collected in this tank built by a motivated group of local volunteers. They use the water for their crops on this mountainside and even have a spigot up in a tree to provide a refreshing shower when they quit work.

About 50 years ago, Señor Mejia was listening to the radio at home heard an agriculturalist say that water sources such as springs would be most productive if protected by wild native vegetation. He decided to “retire” one field that had a small seep

About 50 years ago, Señor Mejia was listening to the radio at home heard an agriculturalist say that water sources such as springs would be most productive if protected by wild native vegetation. He decided to “retire” one field that had a small seeping spring; today, that spring is one of just two sources in El Rosario that are productive even with global warming.

The baseline diet in the catchment area is grown in the community – corn made into tortillas, beans cooked for frijoles, coffee, and water. Every two weeks, a truck races through the community selling fruits and vegetables. In the local Faith & Hope

The baseline diet in the catchment area is grown in the community – corn made into tortillas, beans cooked for frijoles, coffee, and water. Every two weeks, a truck races through the community selling fruits and vegetables. In the local Faith & Hope garden group, women help each other establish gardens near their houses to diversify their diets.

The women of Carrezelito used to walk down a muddy path to get insufficient water from this source shared by the animals. When clean water was supplied through efforts by the engineers and local community, one woman said, “We’re not sick anymore. We

The women of Carrezelito used to walk down a muddy path to get insufficient water from this source shared by the animals. When clean water was supplied through efforts by the engineers and local community, one woman said, “We’re not sick anymore. We are clean and I don’t have cuts and infections all over my feet and legs from that path.”