In recent years, aquifers in the coastal and central parts of El Salvador have receded by as much as 13 feet (4 meters), a trend Minister of Environment Lina Pohl flags as extremely alarming. Meanwhile, more than 90 percent of surface water sources in the country are contaminated, according to reports from the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources.

To make matters worse, none of the country’s main rivers can be purified for drinking through conventional methods such as filtration or chlorination. Experts say that untreated wastewater gushing straight from sewers into rivers as well as runoff from industry and agriculture are to blame.