Words by Smiley Team
DigDeep is a human rights nonprofit working to ensure that every American has access to clean, running water. They are a frontline service provider on the Navajo Nation through their Navajo Water Project.
Prior to the pandemic, DigDeep had already installed running water systems filled by truck in nearly 300 homes on the Navajo Nation. Currently, the team is focused on continuing uninterrupted water deliveries to those families during this pandemic. Their work has changed to include emergency relief actions, such as using water trucks and other vehicles (outfitted with temporary tanks) to deliver clean water to homes in areas not already served.
Historic inequities have compounded the spread of COVID-19 across the Navajo Nation, including a lack of basic infrastructure and adequate healthcare facilities. There are only 46 ICU beds for a population of approximately 173,000. With only thirteen grocery stores on the reservation, many must travel for 30+ miles to buy bottled water, only to find store shelves empty. Those who cannot afford to travel that distance have to fill up containers at public spigots, or even from surface water or livestock windmills.
Annie Lascoe, Chief Relationship Officer at DigDeep, tells us that ‘Unfortunately, lack of water access has been an issue for these communities for quite some time as a result of historical and geographical factors.’
‘On the Navajo Nation, which has the highest Covid-19 infection rate in the US, more than 30% of residents lack access to clean running water. While we were already working to solve this issue, the resulting change from the pandemic is the level of urgency. ‘
There are 2.2M+ Americans without running water at home who prior to the pandemic were potentially able to find workarounds using public access water supplies and community spaces. In the pandemic, when cleaning has become of the highest importance, this lack of water access becomes a public health issue. As Lascoe notes, ‘How are you supposed to safely shelter at home when you don’t have running water to drink, cook, and clean?’
Indigenous-led Navajo Water Project has partnered with Nestlé Waters to distribute a donation of 252,000 gallons of water in a coordinated emergency response. This emergency water supply is being distributed through a network of volunteers from nonprofits, mutual aid groups, health clinics and Navajo government agencies. They are driving the ‘last mile’ to elders, people infected and under quarantine, and others without personal transportation.
Dig Deep welcomes financial donations of any size via their website digdeep.org and all of public donations go directly toward water projects in the US. Corporations wishing to provide emergency supplies can reach out to them at [email protected] to discuss further.
If you can’t contribute financially, there are still plenty of ways to get involved including sharing their work and raising awareness of the fact that over 2 million Americans are living without access to clean running water in their homes. Released in their 2019 study, Closing the Water Gap, many are still unaware that this is an issue within the United States.
By Ellen Jones
