By: Jaiker Gómez Sierra

Environmental Laboratory Coordinator

The Regional Autonomous Corporation of La Guajira, CORPOGUAJIRA, within the functions set out in the Act 99 of 1993, has the responsibility to exercise control and monitoring of liquid discharges that may cause damage or endanger the natural development of the water resource or prevent its use in other uses.. Therefore, It is supported by the analysis of water samples from specific discharges and from the rivers of the department of La Guajira that receive the discharges..

The above, indicates that Corpoguajira must provide protection of the water supply in its jurisdiction, avoiding those threatened in terms of quality and quantity by factors such as: the impact of household activities, industrial and agricultural activities aggravated largely by migratory processes that generate dynamics of accelerated growth of our cities and on the other hand the expansion of the agricultural frontier.

For this continuous action to conserve the sources as an investment in the right of current and future generations to enjoy the precious liquid and as a right applicable to life and to enjoy a healthy environment, the Corporation leads every five (5) years the agreement of the polluting load goals that may be discharged in their jurisdiction.

From next 15 August and until 23 October of the current validity, will begin the consultation process to foresee a global pollution load goal, for the next five years 2020 a 2024, for each body of water that receives specific discharges in its jurisdiction, promoting decontamination at the lowest possible cost in search of sustainable development of La Guajira.

The global goal will be defined for the polluting substances defined as biochemical oxygen demand (DBO) and total suspended solids (SST) and will be expressed, in terms of kilograms/year, as the total load of pollutant to be discharged at the end of the five-year period. Corpoguajira will coordinate the BOD and SST goals that lead users to meet the quality objectives established for water bodies in the short term., medium and long term.

Determining the overall goal, in a body of water, It will be done taking into account the load projections of the users, the execution of works to reduce the expected pollution load and the current quality objectives, as well as the capacity of the body of water to purify the contaminant load to receive.

To fulfill these purposes, CORPOGUAJIRA, summoned all generators of liquid discharges, municipalities, sewer operators, environmental NGOs, academy, prensa, control social, community in general and other actors involved in the use and management of water resources to participate in the polluting load consultation process.