Mamanteo
Mamanteo
Seasonal water retention system using permeable ground cover for storage
A mamanteo or amuna is a pre-Columbian water harvesting system used in mountainous parts of Peru.
It works by 'delaying' rainy-season runoff in the mountains so it can be used in lowlands settlements during the dry season. Using canals, the system targets floods to permeable sections of soil or rock. The water is filtered by the ground layers and emerges in downslope springs weeks or months later, where it can be used to mitigate drought.
The technology may have been used by the Andean Wari culture as early as 700 AD,[1] and some of the ancient systems have been restored in the 21st century to serve modern cities.