BY PAUL LOCKER
It was a scorching August afternoon in Cabo San Lucas when I turned on the tap and nothing came out. Not a drop. Panic set in. The sun was relentless, and with temperatures soaring, being without water wasn’t just inconvenient—it was unbearable.
My fiancée Zulema and I had just settled into a long-term rental last year, returning to Cabo after two years living in mainland Mexico. Everything was perfect until week two, when we ran out of water. Frantically, I scoured Google and Facebook and reached out to local friends, but every pipero (water truck driver) was busy. I found myself wishing I was still cramped in an AirBnB apartment like my first year in Cabo in 2020, with a property manager/guardian angel making sure everything was in order behind the scenes to keep the water flowing.
Water scarcity in Cabo isn’t just about dry taps; it’s a daily challenge for residents. With a booming population and a limited water supply, even when the municipal system is working, it doesn’t guarantee water will reach your home.
The demand is staggering. In 2020, the Los Cabos municipality counted 360,424 residents—a 50% increase from 2010. By 2030, that number is expected to hit 464,000. On top of that, a record 4 million tourists are expected to visit this year. OOMSAPAS, the local water authority, manages two aqueducts and water wells, a desalination plant, and adds over a thousand new connections each year, repairs hundreds of leaks, and plans for the future.
The work done by OOMSAPAS is impressive, but a fundamental problem remains: Cabo’s rotational water system provides neighborhoods with a ration of water for approximately two days, twice a month. This means that access to water ultimately depends on your ability to store water in cisterns, below ground, or tinacos, above ground. For many, that storage simply isn’t enough—especially during the hot summer months.
On top of the municipal system, thousands rely on private water deliveries to fill cisterns and tinacos. In Cabo alone, nearly 1,000 piperos drive their 10,000- to 20,000-liter water trucks daily. Most of these piperos are independent, with fleets rarely exceeding three trucks, and only a handful operate fleets of ten trucks or more.
Despite their vital role, coordinating with piperos can be a challenge for customer and driver alike. Without a centralized system, customers often scramble to find available drivers, leading to delays. Scheduling in advance would help, but logistics currently relies on a back-and-forth WhatsApp conversation. Today, the most efficient solution sometimes involves running outside to flag down a driver as they honk their horn driving by. This is not a viable or scalable solution long term.
After the initial panic of running out of water, we installed a water sensor and added several piperos to our WhatsApp contacts. But even then, it wasn’t enough to guarantee reliable service. Talking with locals, including my brothers-in-law, Carlos and Victor, I realized this was a shared problem impacting locals and ex-pats alike.
My background in San Francisco’s tech scene gave me insight into how technology could help. I spent years offering financial, technology, and operations consulting services to tech companies large and small, including optimizing logistics and operational strategies. But here in Cabo, the problem is highly localized and grounded in existing relationships. Carlos and Victor played a crucial role in making sure the idea worked for the community.
Rather than drilling new wells or adding trucks, we focused on making the most of existing resources—the hardworking piperos—and creating a more organized, efficient system to connect them with customers.
From this challenge, Cabo Pipa was born. It’s a WhatsApp chatbot that lets users order water with one click, schedule deliveries at their convenience, and have it delivered by the same licensed piperos who’ve always served the community—only now, it’s faster and more reliable. Thousands of lines of code work behind the scenes, recreating my experience with the AirBnB property managers to simplify the end-user experience for customers and drivers alike.
Picture this: It’s Saturday morning, and you’re gearing up to spend the day out on the ocean fishing with friends. Midway through your morning shower, the water cuts out. Before Cabo Pipa, you might have canceled your plans and spent hours trying to track down an available pipero. Now, with a simple message, you can place an order, pick a delivery window, and track the driver’s location in real time.
At Cabo Pipa, our mission is simple: to make water access easier and more reliable for everyone in Cabo. By using the resources already in place, we’re cutting through the complexity and offering a solution that can work from day 1 that works for both customers and piperos. Nearly 20 piperos will be available during the first weeks of October 2024 as part of the public launch to the Cabo San Lucas community, and we are continuing to expand.
On-demand service is free for residential customers, and scheduled deliveries will cost about the same as a cup of coffee. We invite you to join us in this journey to make water more accessible across Los Cabos.
Visit our website
www.cabopipa.com to learn more or send a WhatsApp message to +52 624 229 9834 to complete your profile and place your first order (or scan the QR code above). Messages sent in English or from non-Mexican phone numbers will be responded to in English and a live human will step in to the conversation when or as needed.
