SMAPA, Municipal water service provider in Maipú, Chile

SMAPA is a public water utility in Maipú that manages water supply and sewage services for thousands of households and businesses across the municipality. The organization maintains pipelines and infrastructure to ensure reliable service throughout the entire region.

Maipú had a drinking water service before 1920, but decree No. 392 of 12 February 1920 handed its administration to the Empresa de Agua Potable de Santiago, and only part of the population received water for a few hours a day. After the municipality drilled groundwater wells, decree No. 228 of 15 January 1950, signed by President Gabriel González Videla, returned the service to Maipú, which began operating as SMAPA on 1 February 1950. Sewerage projects followed from 1954, and in 2007 SMAPA became a fully municipal company.

The two white concrete towers of Planta Ciudad Jardín I carry the orange-and-green smiling-face logo of Maipú and the letters SMAPA, short for Servicio Municipal de Agua Potable y Alcantarillado. The utility is the only municipally owned sanitation company in Chile, serving Maipú, Cerrillos and parts of Estación Central and San Bernardo, and producing over 75,000,000 cubic metres of water a year for about 670,000 inhabitants.

The two towers of Planta Ciudad Jardín I stand in Maipú, and the plant is a working facility rather than a visitor site, so there is no public access or tour to plan around. The towers are best seen from the street, where the "PLANTA CIUDAD JARDIN I" lettering and the orange-and-green maipú logo face outward.

Unlike most Chilean water utilities, SMAPA is run directly by the municipality rather than private companies. This distinction shapes how the service operates and relates to the local community.