Arsenic Biosand Filter: Sustainable Implementation of an Appropriate Household Drinking Water Filter for Rural Nepal What Are The Problems/ Issues? Technological Deficiencies: Many previous aid projects have failed in rural areas due to the use of inappropriate technologies. Many current point-of-use technologies treat pathogen and arsenic separately, resulting in complicated and time consuming treatments. Many current technologies have low flow rate, insufficient contaminant removal efficiency, complex production process, reliance on material unavailable in rural villages, high replacement cost. Implementation Deficiencies: Failure of many previous aid projects in rural areas is also a result of non-sustainable implementation schemes. Problems include lack of user understanding of the technology, lack of user participation, inadequate long-term monitoring, inadequate co- ordination and transparency among participating parties, etc. Unsafe Drinking Water: 90% of the population in the rural Terai depends on groundwater for drinking water. 20+% of the Terai tube well water is contaminated with arsenic, causing arsenicosis, vascular diseases, and cancer of the lungs, bladder, and kidney. 40+% of the Terai tube well water is contaminated by pathogens, causing diarrhea, intestinal worms, trachoma, cholera, stunting, etc. Results: Currently many villagers have no choice but to drink contaminated water. Women and children are often most vulnerable to water-borne diseases, which are preventable. Our Solution – Arsenic Biosand Filter Lead Organization: Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering Partner Organization 1: Environment and Public Health Organization (ENPHO), Nepal Partner Organization 2: Rural Supply and Sanitation Support Programme (RWSSSP), Nepal Team Leader: Susan Murcott MIT - Team Members: Tommy Ngai MIT - Sophie Walewijk, Stanford University - Roshan Shrestha, ENPHO - Heimo Ojanen, RWSSSP Women are usually responsible for collecting drinking water for their household This coagulation-filtration technology is complicated to use and time-consuming Replacement parts for this U.S.- manufactured water treatment system are unavailable in Nepal This person suffers from skin diseases associated with arsenic poisoning Women and children are often most vulnerable to water-borne diseases Focus on Nepal Total population: 24 millions Rural population: 20 millions Population below poverty line: 11 millions Annual per capita income: US220 12th poorest country in world, poorest in South Asia Literacy rate for women: 24% Children suffering from stunting due to water-borne disease: 51% (World Bank 2002; UNICEF 2003) Filtered Water Fine Sand Coarse Sand & Gravel Iron Nails Water Contaminated Water In To provide safe water and health improvement for millions of poor in the Terai, MIT, ENPHO and RWSSSP developed an innovative, award-winning filter (the Arsenic Biosand Filter, or ABF) for simultaneous arsenic and pathogen removal. The ABF was designed based on iterative and multi- disciplinary thinking inherent in the sustainable development concepts. The design was optimized after five years of research, extensive field experiments, comparison with competing technologies available in Nepal, Bangladesh, India, Haiti, Nicaragua, and other countries, and field assessments of the social, economical, and political constraints of Nepal A 12-months pilot study showed very favorable performance and user acceptability. Simultaneous removal of arsenic and pathogens by combining the strength of two proven technologies: iron- hydroxide, and biosand filter. Robust removal processes based on simple chemistry Aesthetically pleasing filtered water – removal of iron, turbidity, color, etc. from raw water. High flow rate – time savings for women to pursue other productive work. Easy operation and minimal maintenance – suitable for the often illiterate women and children. Simple construction, can be done by trained local technicians, and using materials available in rural villages. Low-cost Large concrete version (left) and Plastic version (right) of the Arsenic Biosand Filter (ABF) Features & Innovations: Filter monitoring and user feedback are important parts of the iterative design process Some villages are only accessible by foot A cross-section diagram of an Arsenic Biosand Filter (ABF) Project Scope To provide safe drinking water to 25 rural villages, a population of about 10,000 To educate and empower individuals toward safe water provision Project duration = 8 months Tube well water is contaminated by arsenic and pathogens ABF can be easily constructed by trained technicians