Biosand filters

[karrie]

http://www.samaritanspurse.ca/ourwork/water/biosandfilter_general.aspx

Wanted to pass this link along to anyone who might be interested in supporting a great cause.

The BioSand Water Filter is an effective slow-sand filter that can be built on-location with local materials. The exterior is made of concrete, with gravel and sand layered through the filter. The rain, surface or ground water is carried through the filter and cleaned by the bio-layers. The slow sand filtration system is ideal for rural water treatment and removes bacteria, viruses, parasites, and other toxins.
Simple, low-cost interventions, like the BioSand Water Filter, are capable of dramatically improving water quality and reducing the risk of diarrhoeal disease by up to 39 per cent.2 The BioSand Water Filter will last for over 20 years with basic maintenance, providing a family with improved water for a lifetime.
The BioSand Water Filter is an award-winning Canadian water filtration technology given to Samaritan's Purse - Canada by developer Dr. David Manz, a former University of Calgary professor.

 

[RomSpaceKnight]

God use of the KIS rule. Replicates natural water aquafers. Reminds me of how Mennonite technology was used to make easily rebuildable hand water pumps. Good old Canadian ingenuity.

 

[karrie]

God use of the KIS rule. Replicates natural water aquafers. Reminds me of how Mennonite technology was used to make easily rebuildable hand water pumps. Good old Canadian ingenuity.

I had seen a show, a snippit of a show really, about the man who invented these, and what he was doing to get them out to third world countries. I filed it away in my brain, and it's kept popping up in odd ways since, mentions of biofilters for koi-ponds would remind me of it, discussions about Katrina victims, who could have benefitted extremely from a $6 water purification device.... the list goes on and on. Then today, in a discussion at my child's school, one of the moms mentioned that her move to Calgary had been delayed 'because they didn't have enough sponsors for their mission yet to move.' I was a little curious, thinking to myself 'what church sends missionaries to Calgary?', so I asked her flat out which church she was with. It turns out, they're not through any church, but rather, engineering missionaries. He travels to all sorts of developing areas to help set up schools, hospitals, and programs like these biosand filters. Part of their philosophy is KIS. Each community needs teams of engineers to go visit, to try to figure out the easiest way to build what is needed, with local supplies. They can then educate the people to carry on, and keep building without them. It's such a brilliant program. He sent me a few things about these filters, and I felt, if nothing else, it's nice to see, like you said, Canadian thinking at work.

 

[RomSpaceKnight]

My compnay is closing our plant in 2008. I hope to go to UWO for engineering. Being an engineering missionary in a developing nation would be so cool and fulfilling.