Students received booklets and attended a lecture focused on environmental education
Conasa, a platform for investments in medium-sized infrastructure concessions in sanitation, public lighting, and highways, delivered this Friday (August 11, 2023) a compact water filtration station to the José Fernandes Coelho Municipal School of Full-Time Education, in Petrolina, Pernambuco, directly benefiting 175 students who used to receive water straight from the water body. The initiative is part of the company’s involvement with environmental actions in Sertões 2023, the largest rally in the Americas that is taking place in the states of Pernambuco, Bahia, and Ceará.
In addition to installing the station, the Conasa team lectured the students on environmental care and delivered a booklet focused on environmental education. “We are very happy with this Conasa action that will guarantee our students the consumption of properly filtered water, improving the quality of life and health of our children. The lecture was very productive and important to expand the repertoire of our students and staff, and the booklet will be a support to teachers who will intensify the use in science classes and in the replication of knowledge to the students’ families”, said Janicleia Amorim, supervisor of the institution.
Students and teachers also interacted with training for the cultivation of pedagogical and organic gardens with the Eccaplan team, a sustainability consultancy, which also receives support from Conasa for the correct disposal of all waste produced along the race route, totaling 3.8 thousand km. Eccaplan’s ‘Sou Resíduo Zero’ (I’m Zero Waste) project aims to reduce waste generation as much as possible and ensure that waste produced is separated, recycled, or disposed of correctly. During the Sertões, several jobs are being generated through the involvement of local cooperatives.
“We are extremely grateful for the partnership with Conasa and Sertões 2023 in carrying out the actions, pedagogical gardens, composting and waste management, from the I’m Zero Waste campaign. More than the environmental actions at the event, we have been able to promote local development, supporting waste picker cooperatives and bringing environmental knowledge to students, who will replicate them to their families and communities”, said Fernando Beltrame, President of Eccaplan.
Delivering drinking water filters
Next week, families in rural areas without sanitation in Petrolina, Raso da Catarina, Crato, Camocim, and Preá will receive 250 drinking water filters developed by Conasa. They are composed of two 10-liter non-toxic plastic buckets, a tap, and a traditional filter candle. In addition to easy maintenance, the model is easily replicable.
Along with the filters, families will receive explanatory booklets on the importance of drinking treated water, warning of diseases related to lack of sanitation, and step-by-step instructions for cleaning the water tank.
Also, on August 18, the Pedro Marques da Cunha Elementary School, located in Cruz, also in Pernambuco, receives the second compact water filtration station donated by Conasa, benefiting 166 students who will now consume treated water.
“The Sertões route shows another reality of Brazil that needs to be noticed. Our actions aim to share knowledge about environmental care and offer practical and replicable resources so more families have access to treated water for consumption, which directly impacts health, quality of life and opportunities for the development of people and localities”, said Mario Marcondes Neto, president of Conasa and pilot in the Sertões 2023.
