Ancestral knowledge application via “albarradas” and “tapes” in water management in Santa Elena province, Ecuador

Integral water management is relevant for sustainability through the criteria application of accumulation, recharge and environmental control of a watershed, enhanced by the rescue of ancestral knowledge. In the Santa Elena province (PSE), there are hundreds of structures of “albarradas” and “tapes”, built by pre-Columbian cultures as tools for water management. The aim of this paper is to present ancestral knowledge linked to groundwater by describing the use of “albarradas” and “tapes”, for the provision of water in rural communities in semi-arid areas. The methodology includes: i) generalities on the use of ancestral structures; ii) description of the “albarradas” and “tapes” in the PSE; iii) conceptual scheme of the structure of this ancestral knowledge; iv) rescue and practice for water management in semiarid areas. In the PSE there are vestiges of more than a hundred “albarradas” and “tapes” in rural areas, which reveal a history and experiences in the management and use of groundwater in these territories. The Ecuadorian government has supported the rescue of knowledge through the rehabilitation of the “albarradas”. In Manglaralto, the community itself, together with strategic allies, has been evolving and adapting this ancestral knowledge, to respond to a growing demand, and thus provide water for their own community, and they have been strengthening their productive activities such as tourism and agriculture. Nowadays, by using the “albarradas” and “tapes”, a system of planting and harvesting water has been put into practice (SyCA), and has becomes the key for water sustainability and the development of rural communities.