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BRIEFING NOTE:A Regional Strategy for the Rio Bogota ProjectGreg Browder (Lead Water and Sanitation Specialist, World Bank), Carmen Yee (Water & Sanitation Specialist, World Bank)
WPP
Bogota River Project - Components
Component 1 ($335 million): Upgrade and expansion of the Salitre Wastewater Treatment Plant (see model above) from 4 to about 8m3/s to treat, convey, and discharge wastewater from three microbasins into the Bogota River.
Component 2 ($140 million): Carry out flood control and environmental improvements to reduce the risk of flooding and establish multifunctional zones along the river.
Component 3 ($7 million): Carry out studies to assist in the environmental sustainability of the Bogota River.
Component 4 ($5 million): Strengthen the capacity of the CAR for the day-to-day implementation of the project. This component also includes carrying out a public outreach campaign and training.
WPP Briefing Note 1 / August 2010
The Water Partnership Program (WPP) is a $20 million program
funded by the Netherlands, Denmark and the United Kingdom. The
WPP aims to enhance the World Bank’s performance on reducing
poverty through the mainstreaming of pragmatic approaches for Water
Resources Management and development, and the improvement of
quality and effectiveness of Water Service Delivery.
WATER PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM
The $487 million Rio Bogota Project consists of a large wastewater treatment plant and
river works in the middle basin of the river where the city of Bogota is located. The project
will be implemented by the Corporación Autónoma Regional de Cundinamarca (CAR), and
is part of a much larger long-term program to improve environmental conditions in the entire
basin. While environmental assessments for large wastewater projects generally do not nor-
mally include a comprehensive discussion of broader basin water management issues (but
focus primarily on the infrastructure to be constructed), the size and importance of the Rio
Bogota Project, and its overall impact on basin water quality and uses, made it necessary to
devote an entire volume of the environmental assessment (EA) to the regional basin plan-
ning context and strategy.
The Water Partnership Program (WPP) provided a grant to assist the CAR in the preparation
of a regional strategy document (Volume 1 of the Project EA), which helped to expand public
understanding of the basin context and strategy, and how the Rio Bogota Project fits into the
broader basin strategy. The document was the most comprehensive environmental assess-
ment ever prepared for any wastewater project in Colombia. The Safeguard Advisory Team
of the Latin American and the Caribbean Region (LCR) sees this strategy as a best case
example for other projects in Colombia and the next round of basin planning in the Bogota
River. It also recommends its replication in the preparation of regional studies and projects
in other Latin American cities and basins.
Thus, the WPP grant has not only had a major impact on a large wastewater project, but
can be expected to similarly improve the design of wastewater and water quality programs
in other countries when replicated.
The Rio Bogota Project: Environmental Recuperation and Flood Control
During the past decade, water and sanita-
tion coverage in Colombia have improved
significantly; however, the wastewater treat-
ment rate remains relatively low. Many riv-
ers flowing through urban areas are highly
polluted, and estuaries and near-shore ar-
eas of coastal cities also experience water
quality problems. To address this situation,
the Ministry of Environment, Housing, and
(Photo: CAR)
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Territorial Development (MADVT) formulat-
ed an action plan to establish a framework
for improvements in wastewater manage-
ment in large urban areas. All large cities in
Colombia, including Bogota, are currently
undertaking investment programs to ad-
dress water pollution concerns.
The metropolitan area Bogota, which has
a population of over 8 million people, dis-
charges all of its wastewater into the Bo-
gota River, but only 20 percent receives
primary treatment. The average dry season
flow entering Bogota is around 10 m3/s
and the city discharges an additional 22
m3/s of wastewater, resulting in extremely
high levels of water pollution. The holding
reservoir for a hydropower facility down-
stream of Bogota, the Muna reservoir, is
also highly contaminated.
The Bogota District Government, in con-
junction with the CAR and the national
government, is undertaking an ambitious
mega-program (estimated costs in the or-
der of $1.5 billion) to improve environmen-
tal conditions in the Bogota River. The CAR
has requested $250 million in World Bank
financing for the $487 million Rio Bogota
Environmental Recuperation and Flood
Control Project (the Rio Bogota Project),
which is part of the larger program. The
project’s objective is to transform the river
by improving water quality, reducing the
risk of flooding, restoring riparian habitats,
and creating multifunctional areas along
the river that provide an ecological habi-
tat, as well as opportunities for the public
use and enjoyment of this urban river. To
address these issues, the project has four
components: wastewater treatment, river
works, water and environmental studies,
and institutional strengthening efforts.
It is anticipated that the project will lead to
improvements in the water quality of the
river’s middle basin such that it will meet
Class IV (suitable for agricultural use) wa-
ter quality standards. In addition, it is ex-
pected that flood control protection in the
metropolitan area will result in less than a
1 percent chance of flooding every year
(a flood return design standard of at least
100 years). Finally, an area of approximate-
ly 175 hectares (divided into eight multi-
functional areas) will be restored along the
river to provide for inundation zones, eco-
logical habitats, and public spaces.
Among the benefits of this project are
improved living conditions for 11,165 low
income families (approx. 50,000 people)
who live along the river and must currently
deal with frequent flooding and poor water
quality. The project will essentially eliminate
flood risk and improve environmental con-
ditions.
WPP Support Instrumental in the Prep-aration of the Regional Basin Strategy
Although there exist many planning stud-
ies, technical reports, and water quality
modeling results, the CAR requested tech-
nical assistance in preparing a strategic
planning framework that brings all this
information together and analyzes it in a
comprehensive manner suitable for both
experts and the general public. The WPP
provided a grant to support the prepara-
tion of a regional basin planning strategy.
This document has been successfully
used to explain these large infrastructure
investments to experts and stakeholders
as well as garner support for the project
and the CAR’s vision for the environmental
2 / WWW.WORLDBANK.ORG/WATER/WPP
The water in this attractive bend of the river in Bogota city is highly polluted and smelly. The Rio Bogota
project will improve water quality and help restore riparian habitats in this area. (Photo: CAR)
restoration of urban rivers. Indeed, the doc-
ument has become an important reference
for both the general public and the gov-
ernment. It was accepted by the Bank and
has become key to the preparation of the
$487 million Rio Bogota Project (the CAR
has requested a $250 million Bank loan).
The document was also used as input into
Colombia’s National Planning Department
report (CONPES) authorizing the project.
The regional strategy was also shared with
the environmental engineering community
at a national conference in Colombia and
an international conference in the United
States.
Significantly, the CAR has relied on this
document to present the project and its
strategic context to key stakeholders in
Colombia. The document was presented at
public meetings in Bogota and was also re-
viewed by a panel of experts. Participants
in the two public consultations included
representatives from government agen-
cies, NGOs, universities, and community
organizations.
The environmental assessment presents
five main outcomes and innovations. It pro-
vides documentation as well as an analysis
of water use, pollution sources, and water
quality in the Bogota River Basin. It sum-
marizes the institutional and legal frame-
work for water resource management, and
the historical efforts and on-going pro-
grams and plans to improve water quality.
In addition, water quality modeling exercis-
es were undertaken as part of the assess-
ment to confirm that secondary treatment
is required for the Salitre wastewater treat-
ment plant in order to meet water quality
objectives in the Bogota River. The regional
strategy assessed the relative importance
of other pollution sources through wa-
ter quality modeling exercises, including
upstream wastewater treatment in small
municipalities and non-point source urban
water pollution from Bogota. Finally, the
document highlights the importance of
controlling urban water run-off in order to
meet coliform standards.
Lessons learned from the WPP activity
Comprehensive Wastewater Management:
Although the existing 4 m3/s Salitre pri-
mary wastewater treatment plant has been
operating for over a decade, there has
been no significant improvement in water
quality in the Bogota River and 70 percent
of the city’s wastewater continues to flow
untreated. Before expansion and upgrad-
ing of the plant takes place, a compre-
hensive plan for wastewater management,
both within and upstream of Bogota, must
be put into place.
The CAR and the Department of Cun-
dinamarca (where the city of Bogota is
located) are currently working on a com-
prehensive wastewater management pro-
gram with several small municipalities that
will increase overall treatment from around
40 percent to over 80 percent by 2015. In
addition, Empresa de Agua y Alcantarillado
de Bogota (EAAB) is currently construct-
ing large wastewater interceptors to collect
70 percent of Bogota’s wastewater and
convey it downstream. The combination of
the interceptors and upstream wastewater
programs will help ensure that water qual-
ity objectives in the middle section of the
basin will be achieved.
This approach does not directly address
water quality problems in the lower part of
the Bogota River Basin, which will continue
into the medium-term. In order to address
these issues, as well as plan the next phase
of the city’s wastewater program, the proj-
ect design includes consulting services to
help prepare an integrated water manage-
ment plan for the entire basin.
Incorporating Ecological Design into Flood
Control Works: Typically, urban flood con-
trol projects focus exclusively on reducing
flood risks by deepening rivers and creat-
ing channels, and/or by raising embank-
ments. This approach results in a river with
little ecological value as riparian areas, me-
anders, and flood plains cease to exist. As
explained in the EA—which was prepared
with technical assistance from WPP, the
design of the Rio Bogota Project will ad-
dress some of these deficiencies by re-
storing meanders, increasing the distance
between the dikes to create riparian zones,
and maintaining hydraulic connections with
adjoining wetland areas. The project aims
to create a dynamic multifunctional river
with ecological and recreational value, as
well as reduce the risks of flooding.
Managing Wastewater Treatment Plant
Biosolids: Wastewater treatment plants
produce large amounts of biosolids that
A REGIONAL STRATEGY FOR THE RIO BOGOTA PROJECT / 3
Comprehensive wastewater management,Incorporating ecological design into flood con-trol works, and Managing wastewater treatment plant biosolids.
The lessons learned as a result of the WPP activity fall into three main areas:
need to be treated and disposed. Typically,
biosolids management costs represent
at least 30 percent of the total costs of
operating a wastewater treatment plant
and constitute a major management chal-
lenge. As a result of the work undertaken
with WPP support and to address this is-
sue, the project design includes technical
assistance for a Biosolids Master Plan to
address the medium- and long-term chal-
lenges of biosolids management.
Outcomes and Impact
Normally, environmental assessments for
wastewater projects do not comprehen-
sively address broader basin water man-
agement issues, but focus primarily on the
infrastructure to be constructed. In this
case, because of the size and significance
of the Rio Bogota Project, it was deemed
important to devote an entire volume of the
environmental assessment to the regional
basin planning context and strategy. The
WPP grant was used to support the prepa-
ration of this assessment and develop the
strategy for the basin.
The resulting exercise is the most com-
prehensive environmental assessment
ever prepared for any wastewater project
in Colombia. Evidence of the importance of
this effort is in the recognition given to the
regional strategy by the LCR Safeguard
Advisory Team, which not only cited it as
an example of a best practice for other
projects in Colombia and the next round of
basin planning in the Bogota River, but also
recommended its replication in the prepa-
ration of regional studies and projects in
other Latin American cities and basins.
Moreover, it suggested that this framework
should be provided as a template to other
clients and Bank teams undertaking large
wastewater and water quality improvement
projects. The Safeguard Advisory Team
noted that “The analysis of alternatives in
Volume 1 of the EA, based on a range of
possible scenarios, and the simulation of
outcomes is outstanding and constitutes
good practice from an environmental per-
spective.”
In addition, the research and analysis pro-
cess that went into the creation of this plan
had a substantial impact on institutional
strengthening in Colombia as it not only
helped improve the ability of the CAR to
undertake water modeling exercises, but
also its presentation capabilities.
References
Corporación Autónoma Regional de Cundinamarca
(CAR). 2010. Río Bogotá – Adecuación Hidráulica
y Recuperación Ambiental: Evaluación ambiental
y Plan de gestión ambiental. Vol. 1. Estrategia re-
gional & Vol. 2. Evaluación ambiental. Bogota.
Wikipedia. Urban Water Management in Bo-
gota, Colombia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Urban_water_management_in_Bogot%C3%A1,_
Colombia#cite_ref-WBPAD_11-0
World Bank and Corporación Autónoma Regional
de Cundinamarca. 2010. Rio Bogota Environmen-
tal Recuperation and Flood Control Project. Power-
Point Presentation. Washington, D.C. March.
World Bank. 2010. Project Appraisal Document
on a Proposed Loan in the Amount of US$250
Million to the Corporación Autónoma Regional de
Cundinamarca for a Río Bogotá Environmental Re-
cuperation and Flood Control Project. Washington,
D.C. Unpublished.
The WPP grant has had a major impact on a large wastewater project and, when replicated throughout the Region, can be expected to similarly improve the de-sign of wastewater and water quality pro-grams in other countries.
A REGIONAL STRATEGY FOR THE RIO BOGOTA PROJECT / 4
The Water Partnership Program (WPP) supports activities in all World Bank Borrowing Member Countries, and imple-
ments its objectives through five lines of action/themes: (a) Water Supply and Sanitation; (b) Agricultural Water Manage-
ment; (c) Water for Energy; (d) Environmental Services; and (e) Water Resources Management. The WPP’s activities
are coordinated through nine Windows: six Regional Windows managed by the Regional water units, a Global Window
implemented by the Water Anchor, a World Bank Institute Window, and the Expert Support Window, consisting of three
Expert Support Team sub-windows managed in the Water Anchor.
The WPP is coordinated by a Program Management Team based in the Water Anchor Unit of the Department of Energy,
Transport, and Water of the World Bank.