The objective of this study was to estimate the economic value that people living in Loja, Ecuador, place on the protection of two basins when the protection is designed to improve both the quality and rehabiHty of the water supply for human consumption by urban residents. Empirical results indicate that households have an average willingness to pay (WTP) of $5.80 per month to preserve the basins. The main variables affecting WTP are current monthly water cost, perception about the fairness of the existing water price, the number of hours that service is available, and the gender of the individual interviewed. The results of this study, and the later implementation by the Loja City Municipality of a basin protection project funded through a fee on water users, provide evidence that households at all income levels strongly support and are willing to pay for a project that has the potential to improve the quality of water services and protect the environment.

En este trabajo se presenta un sistema de generación de energía eléctrica basado en un vórtice gravitacional con sifón para comunidades aisladas, manufacturado en la provincia de Loja Ecuador. El sistema es sumergible funciona como una central de paso y por su diseño se lo puede instalar directamente en canales de riego, ríos, etc. sin obras civiles importantes. La unidad de generación denominada UTG (Underwater Turbine Generator) está conformada por una turbina Kaplan, un generador sumergible síncrono multi-polo con imanes permanentes, un rectificador, un inversor, un vórtice gravitacional y un sifón de evacuación para ganar energía potencial. Además, incluye un control integrado que permite realizar mediciones de los parámetros eléctricos del sistema. De acuerdo con los resultados de la medición de campo, el prototipo UTG basado en un vórtice gravitacional puede ofrecer de forma estable la energía eléctrica a las cargas conectadas, con un factor de planta del 60%.

The need for an energy transition is nowadays undeniable. Climate change, fossil fuel depletion and economic vulnerability are some of the main drivers of the model change. Therefore, it is necessary to promote local energy generation in order to improve a renewable energy transition. This paper presents the design, installation and performance of an Underwater Turbine Generator prototype with a gravitational vortex and siphon. The development of the prototype was done in five stages: contextualization, specifications, conceptualization, detail design and manufacturing. The result of this research is an appropriate, compact and low-cost prototype with a power range of 2 to 10 kW and head of 0.8 to 3 m. According to field measurements, the efficiency of a 7.5 kW generator for heads differences larger than 0.8 m is 37%. This type of design can be reproduced in another context in order to promote the decentralized generation and sustainable growth between the territory and its resources.

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