Puerto Rico's Water Crisis
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LISTENING: to the birds outside
FEELING: unfocused
SEEING: my cat, whom i've missed!
Jose Luigi is a psychologist living in San Juan, Puerto Rico. He hasn't had running water for nearly two months. NPR's Adrian Florida interviewed him for All Things Considered Tuesday. Luigi's experience is shared among many communities in and around the Puerto Rican capital.
The Associated Press reports that at least 40,000 people were affected during one particular outage earlier this month. The situation is severe enough that Gov. Jenniffer González-Colón activated the National Guard to help distribute water.
Do you know what it feels like to turn on your faucet and wait for water that isn't coming? To have to go to a friend's or family's home to shower? To time your bathroom breaks to when you'll have access to a toilet that flushes? This has been Luigi's reality, and the psychologist shared with NPR that it's taken a mental toll. He told NPR:
There's a lot of jokes going around where it's like, oh, maybe I'll go to a psych hospital because I'll have water and electricity, which is, you know, really sad to hear, even as a joke. So it's devastating. As a psychologist, it also feels a little hopeless because we can help people manage, you know, their sadness or anxiety, but it's really heartbreaking to also have them adapt to this. Like, nobody should have to adapt to these problems.
Hearing his story reminds me of the stories out of Flint, Michigan, during its yearslong water crisis that began in 2014. It reminds me of the communities across the country facing contaminated water as data centers rise in their backyards. In the U.S., most planned data centers will be built on lands prone to drought, per the Guardian.
In Puerto Rico, the crisis's cause appears layered. There are the real infrastructural issues that the archipelago faces — issues that have only worsened since Hurricane Maria rocked the Caribbean in 2017. Water pipes are cracked and leaking. Governance (or failed governance) is behind the poor infrastructure, of course, especially for a colonized people who don't get much of a say in who represents them. However, as the Washington Informer reports, Puerto Rico is also facing increased pressure on its water supply from development, tourism, and industry.
Why do we treat water like a limitless commodity? I wrote about this earlier this year, but water is a relative to be revered and respected. I was just in the Columbia River Gorge this weekend, a land where water flows freely and abundantly. The waterfalls and streams and creeks were incredible to see, but reading about Puerto Rico's water troubles reminded me that this can always change. Where there's water one day, there may not be water tomorrow. Especially as our planet continues to heat from fossil fuel pollution.
I'm going to Puerto Rico for July Fourth to take some time off with my loved ones. Our Airbnb has a pool, and our host has assured me that we'll have water. What a privilege, what a luxury. I feel guilty. Fuck us. What about everyone else?
I'll be looking for all the small, family-owned restaurants and vendors to spend my money at, so send recommendations my way. Or drop them in a comment below. (I really wish more of y'all would comment lol!) 🌀
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