INDAP Agustinas 1465, Santiago, ChileThe water scarcity conditions that have affected the Valparaíso region for more than twelve years ended up depleting the water source of the farmers in the Quebrada Alvarado sector in the Olmué commune.This situation forced them to stop planting their land, severely affecting their living conditions, a reality that, far from discouraging them, encouraged the members of the Pozo El Aromo Neighborhood Committee to continue working to recover the water resource.The perseverance and community work of this group of farmers allowed them to access an INDAP irrigation project that considered a hydrogeological study to ensure that the catchment point of a new well was stable and permanent, and also considered the construction of an accumulator of 340 cubic meters.The objective was to improve the security of irrigation for small agricultural producers by improving the availability and security of water resources, as well as the efficiency of distribution systems.“We have had many problems due to the lack of water as a result of the drought of these years and fortunately, thanks to the INDAP project and the contribution of the municipality, we were able to have water security and we will be able to continue sowing and planting with the construction of a deep well and an accumulator.It is an important project for us and it gives us great peace of mind,” said farmer Marcos Alvarado.For his part, the mayor of the commune of Olmué, Jorge Jil, said that “we are very happy for the members of the committee, for the irrigators and because the resources are made available to small farmers to improve the performance of the well they had. .This was a job that was financed through INDAP and the municipality and the idea is to continue working in coordination so that new projects continue to be generated in the community”.The work included the drilling of 67 meters of steel pipe;the installation of an electric pump for the extraction of water;installation of electrical control and protection panel;installation of HDPE piping to convey water to an accumulator dam, and the construction of a 340-cubic-meter accumulator lined with HDPE, in addition to a perimeter fence, an irrigation shed, and an irrigation head.“I want to thank this joint work.This articulation between the farmers, INDAP and the municipality is important to carry out these works successfully.Water is a scarce and very important resource today, especially in this sector, therefore, that they can carry out sustainable agriculture with an efficient use of water resources, is very significant and is part of our work guidelines that seek to contribute to food sovereignty and security”, specified the regional director (S) of INDAP, Daniela Soto.The project, which benefited 30 farmers and 18 hectares of land, required a total investment of $50,192,982, with an INDAP incentive of $45,207,780 and a contribution from the irrigators that was financed by the Municipality of Olmué, which reaches $4,985,202.