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Submission: Don Nolan
The purpose of this project is to train people, local associations, and groups of cattle ranchers assigned by PRODEGA, located in the Chontales department of Nicaragua, in dowsing techniques to find permanent water sources for human consumption and agricultural use.
PRODEGA was started eleven years ago in the Chontales department, forming cooperatives and undertaking other projects focused on improving milk production and marketing for small to medium sized farms. Three years ago, PRODEGA formed Alianza Amerrisque, an alliance of five dairy cooperatives with more than 400 members. The program is funded both by the government of Finland (80%) and the government of Nicaragua (20%).
The farms in this area are located in the mountains with very good soil in most cases. The problems are a lack of water for their cattle, not enough grass on the grazing land, a lack of crop moisture, and challenges in electrical and pumping resources for wells. Where irrigation from stream and river water exists, the land is very productive.
Twice each year these farmers truck their livestock from 150 to 200 miles to another farm strictly because of the water shortages.
Don Nolan, Port Edwards, Wisconsin Farmer to Farmer volunteer, has been teaching adult students how to locate underground water sources, find the depth, find the gallons per minute, and detect water quality. He has also been providing teaching materials that will enable those students to pass along their knowledge to others.
Don, Ronald Blandón, the director of the FTF program in Nicaragua, and Dr. Ariel Campos, a farming specialist for PRODEGA serving as an interpreter, labored for two days to make dowsing tools and amass educational materials for the forthcoming dowsing class in Comalpa. Twenty-eight people from five cooperatives attended this three day water dowsing workshop.
The next three day workshop was held in Juigalpa with 25 in attendance, consisting of members of four other cooperatives and Universidad Nacional Agraria (UNA) students studying in Juigalpa. Some of the attendees came from as far away as 45 kilometers.
During these two workshop sessions, twenty potential well sites were located. Both workshops were very well received with students eager to learn.
The lack of water is the most important problem facing the farming operations in this area. Very few drilled wells exist due to the prohibitive cost. The use of dowsing, and the ability to teach others water location, is a valuable knowledge resource for their farming community.
The placement of a well drilling rig and support equipment in these coopertives would be a great benefit to the community as a whole, providing employment and giving the local economy a boost. This activity would create a positive ripple effect that would be very difficult to measure in monetary terms alone. Sanitary drinking water could be supplied and the need to move cattle twice each year to obtain water and new pasture sources could be eliminated.
The following recommendations are being made with regard to this well drilling project:
1. Cooperatives should seriously consider buying a well drilling rig and becoming a drilling contractor, offering this service to the members of their cooperatives and others at a reasonable fee.
2. Cooperatives could pool their resources for the purchase and operation of a well drilling rig to minimize expenses.
3. Percussion drilling rigs are recommended because of the reduced size of the machinery and the lower maintenance cost.
4. Wind and solar power use should be considered for pumping water and irrigation.
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