Environmental Management in Bolivia : Innovations and Opportunities
Pollution management is at the top of the development agenda of Bolivia, and this program helps address it in a cross-sectoral manner. In the context of the implementation of the program environmental management in Bolivia: innovations and opportunities which was conducted from September 2010 until October 2012, the World Bank has implemented a technical assistance program and supported a multisectoral analysis in order to help the Bolivian government improve environmental management in four specific areas: (a) water resource pollution by mining and mitigation of the pollution; (b) evaluation of potential wastewater reuse in agriculture with case studies from Cochabamba and Tarija; (c) improvement of waste management; and (d) evaluation of health benefits through adequate water supply and basic sanitation. The program s overall objective is to help strengthen environmental management in critical areas of the pollution management agenda. This report summarizes the outcomes of the pillar of the program on analytical services and is divided into five chapters: (1) improved water supply, sanitation, and hygiene: health impacts; (2) innovation in solid waste management: options for the future; (3) reuse of wastewater to mitigate water scarcity: case studies in Cochabamba and Tarija; (4) cooperative gold mining: dynamics and challenges in a rapidly growing sector; and (5) mining and water: the benefits of integrated water resource management at the watershed level. In every instance, the focus has been on identifying the windows of opportunity for policy action and investment in what is an often complex social and economic setting. The findings and recommendations carried out as part of the program have been consulted upon with a broad range of stakeholders in Bolivia through the series of workshops on each of the topics, and the recommendations presented in this report are limited to a range of options that are feasible and yet innovative in the current context, hence the reference in the title of this report to innovations and opportunities.