Cuenca Just Spent $1.85 Million to Make Sure You Never Run Out of Water Again

Remember the drought scare in 2024? When Cuenca came within striking distance of water rationing and everyone suddenly started paying attention to where our water actually comes from?

ETAPA just made a big move to make sure that doesn't happen again.

The Purchase

Cuenca's water utility has acquired 1,197.12 hectares of páramo and wetlands in the Genjeno sector, adjacent to Parque Nacional Cajas. The price tag: $1,850,221.29.

That's about 3,000 acres of high-altitude ecosystem sitting above 3,500 meters — the spongy, boggy terrain that captures rainfall and feeds it slowly into Cuenca's rivers and reservoirs.

ETAPA's general manager Verónica Polo put it simply: "Estamos en la zona más alta donde se cosecha el agua" — we're in the highest zone where water is harvested.

A Growing Buffer

This isn't a one-off purchase. ETAPA has been steadily expanding its land holdings to protect water sources:

• 2023: 134.84 hectares acquired
• 2025: 730.16 hectares
• 2026 so far: 332.12 hectares

The latest acquisition is the biggest single purchase yet.

Where the Money Came From

Here's a fun detail: part of the funding — $280,406 — came from the Nicky Jam concert held in Cuenca back in February 2026. So if you went to that show, congratulations — you helped buy a watershed.

ETAPA's long-term goal is to invest $5 million in land acquisitions to guarantee sustainable water service for Cuenca until 2050.

Why This Matters

Cuenca's water comes from the páramo. The páramo is under pressure from agriculture, climate change, and development. Every hectare ETAPA protects is a hectare that keeps filtering and storing water for the city.

After 2024, nobody in Cuenca needs a lecture about why water security matters. This is the kind of long-game infrastructure investment that doesn't make headlines but makes everything else work.

Source: El Mercurio