there's something in the water here

I have been wanting to do a post about the water here, as I have been sick for the last 2 DAYS (and I am quite certain it is due to the pollution in the water).  Only 87% of the water in the city is "drinkable" (according to what standards, I don't know).  But it's not only in the cities. 62% of Peru's rural population has access to pure drinking water, according to this article.

Sadly enough, I have also learned that much of the water pollution is due to the large mining projects that pollute the lakes and rivers.  While these mines contribute immensely to Peru's strong economic growth, it is tragic that it renders the water totally undrinkable.  We have to boil water on the stove for over ten minutes for it to be drinkable.  It is a big pain in the butt and does not always guarantee that you will not get sick, so we buy a lot of bottled water.  And because we do this, we are killing the environment even more.  

We have found that we can "recycle" at the local South American Explorers so we have been taking our bottles there.  Unfortunately, Peru does not have the infrastructure to recycle yet, so these "recycled items" go to a landfill where they will one day be recycled.

To make matters even worse, Peruvians have no concept of cleanliness. They throw trash out car windows, they let their dogs crap all over the streets and they watch their bathrooms overflow onto the streets and into the rivers.  That cannot be good for the water situation, either.