When there is no water available, we complain. That’s understandable.
We need water to clean ourselves, to cook our foods, to wash our clothes, and to grow our crops. Pundits say we can go about 100 hours without drinking when it is an average temperature outside. If it’s cooler, we can go a little longer. But it’s a different story if we are exposed to hot sunlight; the time is definitely shorter.
Most photographers tell you about “the rule of third.” But that’s not only for photography, but for man’s survival as well. Just remember: We can live for 3 minutes without air (oxygen, I mean), 3 days without water, and 3 weeks without food.
“Water is fundamental for life and health. The human right to water is indispensable for leading a healthy life in human dignity. It is a prerequisite to the realization of all other human rights.”
That statement comes from the United Nations Committee on Economic, Cultural and Social Rights.
Inadequate water and sanitation are primary causes of diseases such as malaria, cholera, dysentery, schistosomiasis, infectious hepatitis and diarrhea, associated with 3.4 million deaths each year. Inadequate water and sanitation are also a major cause of poverty and the growing disparity between rich and poor.
“It is estimated that almost one third of the global burden of disease (for all ages) can be attributed to environmental risk factors. Over 40% of this burden falls on children under five years of age, even though they make up only about 10% of the world’s population,” said Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland when she was still the director-general of the World Health Organization (WHO).
The water we have now is the same amount as in the days when Adam and Eve were created by God.
“The supply of freshwater on earth is finite,” said American journalist Don Hinrichsen, my co-author of a paper which was included in the book, Finding the Source: The Linkages Between Population and Water. “Thus, as the population grows, there is less water per capita.”
In his foreword of the book, which was launched at Washington, D.C., Dr. Geoffrey D. Dabelko, then the director of Woodrow Wilson Center’s Environmental Change and Security Project, wrote: “Population and freshwater are widely recognized as two of the most important issues facing humanity. Yet, too few policymakers are aware of the close links between these two phenomena as well as their ramifications for livelihoods, economic productivity, and political and regional stability.”
Now, I received this press release from the Science and Technology Media Service of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) stating that barangay Pangi in Siquijor shared the same problem as those being experienced by urban centers: the limited supply of tap water to be used by households and establishments.
Siquijor is the smallest island province in the Central Visayas Region. Barangay Pangi is known to be the biggest barangay in the province in terms of population and land area. It is home to an estimated 300 households as well as public and private establishments.
This paragraph sounds familiar: “Most residents had to sleep late at night to wait for scheduled water service and collect enough for the following day’s consumption. Sometimes, they have no choice but to collect rainwater to be used for household chores, such as toilet cleaning and laundry.”
Now, the good news: To meet the 24-hour water supply needs of barangay Pangi residents, the local government of Siquijor solicited the assistance of the DOST Region VII. Both signed a joint Memorandum of Agreement for the project titled “Science and Technology Support for the Upgrading of Water Supply in Barangay Pangi, Siquijor to Enhance Water Quality and Distribution Capacity” through its Grants-In-Aid Program.
Two years ago, the DOST-VII conducted a Technology Needs Assessment (TNA) to determine appropriate interventions needed to increase the water supply. The result of the assessment came with the following technological intervention: installation of a solar-powered water pumping station as a backup during the day and during power outages, a water filtration system to make the water safe for drinking by economically disadvantaged households, an additional water storage system, and trained personnel to oversee the project.
Before the project came into fruition, the Metro Siquijor Water District, the local water supplier, had limited water sources that couldn’t supply the entire municipality of Siquijor. With this, the residents of barangay Pangi longed to enjoy sufficient, if not abundant, water supply like the other areas in the province.
The solution came when the local government unit of Siquijor learned of the barangay’s water needs and since Pangi has a good underground water source, the officials set aside a couple of million pesos to extract water. They devised a method of extracting water from deep wells using an electric power pump and stored it in a tank.
“The project made life easier for the residents who now enjoy a steady water supply for their daily needs,” the press release said. “However, the water pump’s capacity is only good for three hours of operation, the same as the tank capacity. But this intervention has already improved the water situation in the community, and there is still more to be done.”
The project was completed in December last year, and the water system is now capable of supplying water to the community around the clock, and it will soon serve an additional number of households in neighboring barangays.
I think some barangays in Davao City or other provinces in the Davao region can learn something from the Pangi experience.
