THE MAGAZINE
VOL. 156
ENVIROMENTAL ISSUES
NOVEMBER 2015
Canada $4.50- USA $6.00-Mexico 3,000 p.- COL 5.67
YOUR DAILY DOSE OF WATER
Living under
Sand Possible?
Growing Bees The economy of honey
WATERisLIFE Safe a life just with a straw IceNorth Breaker Pole last news NOVEMBER 21/2015
Enviromental Issues
WATERisLIFE Is dedicated to making a dramatic impact and saving lives all over the world by utilizing an integrated program to transform entire villages. By:Stephanie Ahumada
Enviromental Issues
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“WiL mission is to provide clean water, sanitation and hygiene programs.”
W
FACTS
Saving Lives. Transforming Communities.
ATERisLIFE is about impact, showing donors and supporters how lives are being changed. Provides clean drinking water, sanitation and hygiene education programs to schools and villages in need. WATERisLIFE provide opportunities for others to be involved through fundraising and field project implementation. The global water crisis can be daunting. At WiL, they main focus start on making an impact community by community. Through community-driven and community-engaged programs, WATERisLIFE works closely with nonprofit partners, local governments and community organizations to focus on an integrated approach that ensures households, schools, orphanages and medical facilities have access to safe water, proper sanitation and hygiene programs that keeps people safe. The results of their work change everything. Hours are restored each day. Women can use their time to learn a trade, start a business and receive an income.
Children can receive an education. Clean water will reduce sickness by almost a third.WATERisLIFE not only provide temporary, life-saving water filtration straws for the immediate need, but WiL is also committed to developing community-driven initiatives that will continue to save thousands of lives for generations to come.
“An integrated approach of providing water, sanitation and hygiene reduces the number of deaths caused by diarrheal diseases by an average of 65%.” - World Health Organization
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Create community water, sanitation and hygiene Action Groups to collaborate on development of self-sustaining, long-term water, hygiene and sanitation programs in communities, schools ,medical hospitals and orphanages.
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Distribute WATERisLIFE straw filters to partner villages and during disaster situations to provide an immediate clean water solution to save lives.
2.4 million deaths could be prevented each year if people had access to clean water and adequate sanitation and practiced good hygiene.
Almost 1 billion
people lack access to safe water, and about 2.6 billion people do not have improved sanitation. Hand washing with soap can re-duce diarrhea incidence by 48%,some tips like that can help millions of people.
1 in 5 children
under the age of 5 die each day from waterborne disease. One every 21 seconds as a direct result of contaminated water and poor sanitation and self hygiene. story continue next page4
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Enviromental Issues
How long does the filter last?
THE STRAW What is the WATERisLIFE water filter straw? The filter is a portable water purifier, which can be used in any water source to provide clean and safe drinking water. How is the filter made? The filter is made from durable plastic approximately 10 inches in length and 1 inch in diameter. The internal components include membranes, iodized crystals and active carbon, which removes the iodide taste and medium-sized bacteria and is effective against waterborne bacteria and viruses, such as typhoid, cholera, E. coli, dysentery and diarrhea. The two-stage filtration system reduces harmful particles, from 125 micron down to a minimal 15 micron. How is the filter used? The filter acts as a straw. It hangs around the neck of a child and provides him or her clean, filtered water, a basic need for survival. As the water passes through the filter, it’s cleaned, but it is recommended that the first sip be spit out.
NANO BUCKET FILTER The WATERisLIFE Nano Bucket Filter (a hollow fiber membrane filtration system) is similar to a common kitchen strainer or coffee filter but at a microscopic level.
Enviromental Issues
The filter can clean more than 800 liters of water total, or 2-3 liters of water per day. As a comparison, the average child in Africa receives 8 ounces of water per day. The filter on average will last one year and will clog internally when it is no longer effective. How much are the filters? Each filter is purchased for $10. The larger the quantity of filters that are ordered for a specific project, the lower the cost per filter. iodine
crystals
charcoal Filter
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CHARCOAL FILTER
Water passes through the final charcoal grates, removing any bad tastes and providing fresh, safe water.
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IODINE CRYSTAL
Next, the water passes through an iodine filtration system to eliminate diseases.
How can an organization order WATERisLIFE filters? Any organization can purchase the straws. The organization can also place their name on the filter at no additional cost with minimum quantities. Large quantity discounts often apply. All your help count is so simple, just tell or ask for support.Contact info@waterislife.com for additional informatio
Using the same technology as kidney dialysis, the tiny polysulfone micro tubes trap all bacteria larger than 1 microns in diameter.
Harmful bacteria and microorganisms, which contribute to millions of deaths each year, remain inside the filter casing and are removed by simple back flushing, the inside is safe.
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membrane Filter
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MEMBER FILTER
When the straw hits the water the first chamber filters particles, membranes and molecules.
WATERisLIFE Nano Bucket Filters provide an effective way to purify water by using physical barrier filtration to remove pathogens from water (see figure). This ultra purification system does not require chemicals; it is efficient; and it does not remove natural, valuable minerals, such as calcium and magnesium.
Women of the Akan tribe (Ghana) with the Nano Bucket Filter. June/2015
Teaching people how to assemble the WATERisLIFE Nano Bucket Filter does not require printed instructions or even the ability to speak the local language.
A hands-on demonstration allows for easy assembly.The bucket or container must be in a plastic material, but it can be almost any size (two gallon or five-gallon).
The buckets are purchased locally to support the economy and ensure future availability. Each WATERisLIFE Nano Bucket Filter is $40 and, with proper back flushing, can last up to 10 years. This is a one-bucket system.
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Enviromental Issues
CHANGE iT If we each find and save change, it really adds up — washing machine coins, pennies in shopping store parking lots, nickels or dimes in the couch. Together, we can give the gift of water, saving thousands if not millions of lives. The Change iT program is about fundraising with coins to help WATERisLIFE deliver clean water, sanitation and hygiene solutions to millions in need. Schools can easily create and implement an educational curriculum that links the WATERisLIFE Change iT campaign directly to daily learning opportunities. For example: MathCreate counting and math opportunities as change is collected and calculated. GeographyCreate a location and cultural study of partner communities or communities in need (map reading, GPS locations, terrain, agriculture, etc.). ScienceStudy the contents of the WATERisLIFE straw and how it protects against waterborne diseases; explore water usage in our city, state and country; create a science fair project about water and its global impact; or create a project depicting where our water comes from. LanguageCreate essays on the global water crisis, local water conservation and what it would be like to walk for water, or research government actions. Please contact us at info@waterislife.com if you are interested in partnering with a village in need. Enviromental Issues
WATER SOURCE EXCAVATION In many parts of the world, a community’s water source is a manmade lake or dugout. These dugouts “catch” the water during rainy season and store it for the year. Although contamination issues are inherent in an open-water dugout, it may be the only viable source for storing water. Geology, remoteness and several other factors prevent implementation of other solutions. In these installations, WiL always provides point-of-use filters to households for clean drinking water.
WATER SOURCE REDESIGN Fencing There are many ways to protect open water sources from contamination. WATERisLIFE uses fencing to protect open-water sources and create long-term safe water access. Putting fencing around dugouts (man-made ponds) to keep animals out of the water source is critical to the health of the community. WATERisLIFE also caps hand-dug, open wells, installs hand pumps, and encloses natural springs, piping it to protect the spring’s integrity.
These clean water sources include natural springs and government water companies. This solution provides sustainable water access and can transform the lives of an entire community.
PUMPS Many people throughout the developing world rely on a hand pump for their water supply. But, like any other mechanical device, hand pumps can wear out and break from high-volume daily use. Tens of thousands of hand pumps in the developing world need simple repairs. WATERisLIFE offers a robust program in pump repair and replacement, and in addition, the program incorporates modifying hand-dug wells to install covers and hand pumps. The causes and the frequency of malfunction are affected by many variables. Keeping hand pumps sustainable is a priority. WATERisLIFE teams install and repair submersible (including solar), India MK II and III, Afridev, Vergnet, bush, and Water4 Access pumps.
Excavation Ghana 2012.
Government Partnership Water Connections Many water solutions can involve connecting to existing clean water sources and piping the water to households or, more commonly, centralized water distribution points within a community.
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Ghana kid collecting water.
SANITATION The lack of global sanitation facilities is astounding — more than 2 billion people do not have access to a decent toilet. This global lack of services exposes people to easily preventable diseases, and it deprives them of their dignity. Clean water with sanitation access is key to children’s survival, development and growth. Sanitation solutions and support are critical to the WATERisLIFE integrated longterm approach to save lives and transform communities. WATERisLIFE helps support total elimination of open defecation. This begins with collective community decisions and local action. WATERisLIFE’s sanitation approach provides self and local empowerment, as the community analysis comes from within. WATERisLIFE employs the Community Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) approach pioneered by Dr. Kamal Kar. Through local participation and facilitation, communities are empowered to analyze their sanitation and waste situation and make collective change without relying on subsidies. CLTS allows communities to gradually move up the sanitation ladder and create sustainable behavior change.
sanitation and hygiene behaviors. These discussions trigger the community to acknowledge their challenges, which is the first step to creating change from within.
COUNTRIES WATERisLIFE’s work continues in villages in northern and central Haiti and Port-au-Prince. We provide WiL straw filter and bucket filter distribution, hygiene education programming, pump rehabs, well drilling, and sanitation assistance. Meet Kerlin. He is a bright, young and silly kid who lives in an orphanage of 30 children in Haiti. Like any child, he is full of dreams and hopes for a bright future. Kerlin was in the WATERisLIFE First World Problems Anthem video. (He doesn’t like pickles!) With donations from the video, Kerlin was able to help us bring clean water to his country. He worked very hard alongside of the WATERisLIFE team to prep, drill and complete a water well in Haiti. Kerlin is inspired to be the WATERisLIFE.
Haiti Ambassador for clean water, sanitation and hygiene, dreaming of working on a drill rig to continue to bring clean water and save lives. Kerlin is looking forward to a bright future, and his story is just one example of the many ways your donations make a direct impact on the lives of those in need. This is your donations in action: saving lives and transforming communities. Our integrated WASH approach, which includes sustainable clean water provisions, sanitation solutions and hygiene education training programs, will lead to accelerated progress in these villages in the areas of economics, health, education and environment. The program also includes micro finance setups to create self-sustaining and community-involved initiatives. Thanks to your continued support, this village and many others in the area are training and setting transforming communities from within latrine artisan training, soap-making and bucket filter businesses.
The CLTS Approach includes WiL visits the community numerous times to build rapport and relationships over a several-month period. During the initial visits, WATERisLife learns more about the community, and together we plan for successful triggering and response. The WATERisLIFE Field Team (trained CLTS leaders) sets a specific time to visit with materials. They walk the community areas and ask questions to help identify poor NOVEMBER 21/2015
Enviromental Issues