Safe Water for the "Other Half"

Drilling in the Congo

Here's the bad news and the good news.

Hand pumps are very expensive in the Congo.  It costs over $2,000 for a shallow well hand pump.

There is ample supply of water available in these shallow wells for rural poor Congolese.

via www.reuters.com

The amount of water a borehole yields is another key issue. A small community hand pump needs a borehole with a flow rate of 0.1 to 0.3 liters per second. For large-scale irrigation, the rate needs to be much higher, say around 50 liters.

Phoebe White, a water, sanitation and hygiene specialist for the UK Department for International Development based in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, said hand pumps in the DRC cost up to $13,000 apiece but in some areas the aquifers are too deep and other pumps must be used.

In areas of DRC where drilling deep boreholes is required the cost can be around $130,000, although problems of accessibility and infrastructure can push that figure up, according to White.

The researchers say the maps, based on existing geological charts from governments and hundreds of aquifer studies, are aimed at promoting a "more realistic assessments of water security and water stress".

Roger Calow at UK think-tank the Overseas Development Institute, which was involved in the program that spawned the research, said the paper shows water shortages in large parts of Africa do not stem from scarcity.

"What the science is telling us is that we have more storage in these shallow, relatively unproductive (aquifers) than we thought," he said, adding that about 60 percent of Africans still live in rural areas and 80 pct of those rely on groundwater systems.

Calow said a third of hand pumps across Africa have broken down due to a lack of maintenance.

Aid agencies gave the research a cautious welcome.

"The discovery of substantial water reserves under parts of Africa may well be good news for the continent but it may prove hard to access in the near term and, if not sustainably managed, could have unforeseen impacts," Nick Nuttall, spokesman for the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) in Nairobi.

My Drinking Water Crisis

During very rare occasions, our health officials advise us to boil our water before drinking. Normally, this occurs after our water source may have become accidentally contaminated. In the Congo, all water is contaminated and requires treatment before drinking. So how did I purify my water for drinking?

Back in March a year ago, I tested the water sources in my living community in Kananga. We found some sources to be highly contaminated as evidenced by this picture. As a result, I knew that the local water must be treated before drinking.

Instead of our boiling water to purify it, we filtered our water for drinking at our house. Routinely, we requested our water from the best water source in the area. And we used a ceramic candle water filter. It worked well and I never got sick.

One day during my last trip, I decided to clean out the ceramic candle water filter system. (I had too much time on my hand!) As I was cleaning it, I broke the heart of the system, the ceramic candles. Immediately afterward, I remembered from my water quality testing class that ceramic candles can be easily damaged or broken. Now, how do we purify our water for drinking? Do we boil or filter our water?

Well, we did not have a bio sand filter that was not operational at the house. And it would take about 20-25 days to make it be fully functional to purify water for drinking. So, we turned to our LifeStraw Family filter. Within two minutes it was ready to purify our water for drinking. Our drinking water crisis that I created was solved.We were blessed since I had a number of LifeStraw Family filters on-hand for familiarization and evaluation.

Congolese families are not so blessed. Soon they will be blessed through our water project which will provide LifeStraw Families to those with contaminated water sources. In next year, Congo Helping Hands will introduce 600 LifeStraw Family water filters. Also, we will introduce about 300 bio sand water filters.

Congo cholera epidemic spreading fast

Cholera is so preventable.  Since most people drink contaminated water from Congo, water filters would solve this problem.  Also, they could boil the water.

via www.trust.org

A cholera outbreak has killed hundreds of people in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and aid agencies are concerned the disease which is spreading fast may cause further deaths if efforts to combat the epidemic are not stepped up.

The epidemic has hit several communities along the Congo River and has spread to the neighbouring Republic of Congo, the U.N.'s World Health Organisation (WHO) said.

Cholera is an acute intestinal infection spread through contaminated food and water. It is easy to treat, but many can die if a community is unprepared for a major outbreak.

Increases a Student's Chance of Excelling

Water, sanitation, and hygiene improves a student's chance of excelling. I think they are healthier and are available for school more.

Schools that promote a healthy learning environment for pupils help to improve their academic performances, a team of researchers has said.

The researchers said such schools, among other things, ensure that the institutions have access to water and sanitation facilities and teachers engage pupils frequently on discussions about health. This promotes teaching and learning thus increasing student’s chances of excelling in their academics.

via www.coastweek.com

The Water.org Way

Here's an interesting article on how to solve the water problem.   Actually, it's water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) problem.

Efforts to improve the quality of water, sanitation and hygiene in the developing world are not as glamorous as other charitable endeavors. So why is Water.org featured in the most recent issue  of Fast Company magazine? One of the co-founders is actor Matt Damon.

The other co-founder is Gary White, who works out of an office in downtown Kansas City. White had been working in the area of water access for two decades when he and Damon merged their charitable organizations in 2009.

White and Damon make a good team. Water.org is on track to raise $10 million in 2011, up from $4 million in 2010, according to Fast Company.

The primary use of that money is not as a handout to well drillers. Rather, Water.org tends to negotiate deals between microfinance institutions and communities. It might help a village get access to a local banker, who will then lend money to build systems that tap into a well, or a previously inaccessible water or sanitation grid. Water.org may guarantee the loan, but repayment falls to the villagers, who work together to manage the water supply and organize credit payments.

 

via blogs.pitch.com