Environeers: Providing Clean drinking water in Flores

Cameron Selbie: Environeers

I recently spent some time at a school called SMAK Bhaktyarsa in Maumere, Flores, Indonesia. Many of the pupils at this school are orphans and there is also a foundation which takes in abused kids or abandoned single mothers and helps them to get back on their feet. I noticed very quickly that they had several issues with their water supply. This is true for both their running water and drinking water. They drink over 120 litres of plastic bottled water everyday as this is currently their only source of safe drinking water. They currently get their running water from a well which is not safe to drink and has very high limestone concentrations and is even described in some cases as containing an oil of some sort. I felt that a more sustainable drinking water supply should be implemented and a basic filtration system could also be installed to remove the limestone from their running water. Water is often a commodity which is taken for granted by most people, but in cases like this they can carry many different and dangerous waterborne diseases. I would like to provide gravity fed clay water filters, made by a company called Terra Water Indonesia in Bali, for the schools use. Terra Water have run independently verified laboratory tests on the effectiveness and output of their water filters and I believe it would be an ideal solution for this school. Multiple Terra-lite Filters would need to be bought to provide the volume of water the school demands on a long-term basis. Furthermore, these filters are very convenient and can be placed in different locations such as common rooms or boarding houses and do not require electricity. If possible, I would also like to buy and install a small permanent water filter which would filter large particles such as limestone out of their running water. This project would initially be limited to this school, however, if it proves successful, there are many other institutions around Flores which could also potentially benefit from using these products.

Anything you can afford to donate would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you very much in advance for your kind contributions. Regards, Cameron