International Action's Campaign for Clean Water in HaitiBy Bryan Schaaf on Monday, December 1, 2008.
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Nearly every water source in Haiti – rivers, streams, springs and wells – is contaminated by human waste. There are no public sewage treatment or disposal systems anywhere in the country – even in the large cities. The lack of clean drinking water contributes to the highest infant and child mortality rate in the Western Hemisphere. In fact, the leading killer of children is waterborne disease – hepatitis, typhoid and diarrhea – all carried in water used for drinking, cooking, washing.
Children who repeatedly suffer from water borne disease miss school, become malnourished, and are more vulnerable to other leading causes of sickness and death in Haiti such as malaria, measles, etc. Repeated bouts of illness and malnourishment at a young age can impair cognitive development.
In Port-au-Prince, Haiti, we are installing the country’s first practical system for chlorinating water supplies. Since May 2006, we have installed more than 100 chlorinators on neighborhood water tanks in Haiti’s capital, protecting the water supply for some 400,000 people.
At the end of five years, we aim to have installed 500 chlorinators covering most of the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area, giving clean water for the first time to 2.5 million people. Our special tablet chlorinators require no electricity, but operate on the gravity flow of water from city or village water sources. Designed and provided by NORWECO, Norwalk, OH; they are simple to install, easy to operate and trouble-free to maintain. They are very effective in developing countries like Haiti.
The chlorine tablets used are also special – designed to be stable and safe, even in the difficult storage conditions in developing countries. International Action chlorine tablets are reasonable in cost - in Jalousie for 50,000 people the price per month is $50 or less than one cent per person per month – they are provided by Arch Chemicals a world leader firm in water sanitization, located in Norwalk, CT.
International Action focuses on the poorest neighborhoods of Port-au-Prince. We have installations in Jalousie, Delmas, Tokyo, Cité Soleil, Simmond Pelé, Carrefour, etc. The biggest installation in Arcahaie, a town outside of Port-au-Prince, gives access to clean and safe water to 100,000 people!
Even in less stable parts of Port-au-Prince, International Action is able to work with communities to establish and maintain chlorination systems. International Action has also intervened and installed their chlorinators in hospitals, schools, orphanages and is currently working with jails of the Port-au-Prince area.
We provide chlorinators and tablets for free as well as training for local board members who will be responsible for maintaining the system. We seek to encourage local “ownership” of each water system and teach the skills needed to sustain the systems in future years. Local water boards are trained by an International Action staff of “circuit riders” to monitor chlorine levels, make repairs, and educate their neighbors about clean water. Our staff rides the circuit of installed chlorinators once a month to check on maintenance, supply the local Water Boards with chlorine tablets and answer their questions.
Doctors, mothers, and teachers all have noticed the change: children are healthier. The number of patients for waterborne diseases has considerably decreased in local clinics. Mothers trust our water and give it to their babies with no worries. Teachers who have seen their students collapse in class because of the lack of access to water are now thrilled to find the pupils energetic and eager to learn. Our chlorinators are reliable, safe and have gained many supporters in Port-au-Prince.
“When I give it to my baby even when she was 3 she did not get sick. Personally before the intervention of International Action in the neighborhood I could not drink the water from CAMEP, I used only to wash clothes and cook. I saved a lot of money now because I use to buy treated water at a very high price for my children.” Says Janita Jean-Louis a resident of Jalousie. Also, Dr. Alain Louis, a scientist with a laboratory in the city, tested the water in Jalousie and confirmed that water borne pathogens the are no longer present in Jalousie’s water.
“I did not know that there was an NGO in the neighborhood working on water purification. No one told me. Last year around this time I noticed that the amount of patients had decreased. I wondered what was happening. I thought it was a miracle from God. One day I met Mr. Dalebrun and his people. He asked me about the cases that I encountered the most. This is when he informed me about his work in the neighborhood. This is when I understood how there was a decrease in the cases of diarrhea, fevers, vomiting, etc…” Says Francoise Larivaux, a nurse from Cité Canada a neighborhood of the capital.
Dr. Remy, a pediatrician who works for the AME (African Methodist Episcopal) churches, said that contaminated water makes children repeatedly sick and they often miss classes. Children go all day in class without water and some simply collapse before the day’s end. Now, the 233 students at National Virginia Sampeur School drink clean water. Dr. Remy related that the clean drinking water became a big event in the 2007-2008 academic year. Even AME’s neighbors are amazed.
Today more than 400,000 people have access to clean water, most of them children. For many it is the first help they have had in years and this time it has changed their lives for the better. Children are less sick; they can attend class and enjoy their life to the fullest. With our clean water; people can now spend their money on other vital necessities without worrying about having to purchase expensive buckets coming from private basins or trucking.
We welcome collaboration with other organizations or institutions such as hospitals, schools and orphanages. Our organization relies on the generosity of concerned individuals and organizations in order to expand access to clean water to other neighborhoods in Port au Prince.
Our goal is to be able to provide access to clean water for 2.5 million people by 2010. A gift of $265 will purchase, ship and install a small chlorinator for a community of up to 10,000 people; $995 will purchase, ship and install a large chlorinator able to provide water for up to 50,000 people. When properly maintained, these chlorinators will last for more than 25 years. These interventions are cost-effective and have a positive impact on the community, especially for women and children.
The gift of clean water is the gift of life. For more information you can visit our website at www.haitiwater.org. To inquire about internships, volunteering, or partnering with us please email us at info@haitiwater.org.
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INTERNATIONAL ACTION INTERVENES IN HAITI’S CHOLERA OUTBREAK
10/22/2010
Wesley Laîné and Jeremy Mak
Public Information: 202-488-0735
info@haitiwater.org
www.HaitiWater.org
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A deadly cholera outbreak has erupted across Haiti's Artibonite Department, claiming at least 150 lives and sickening more than 1,500 others. The first registered cholera epidemic in Haiti in decades is the worst public health catastrophe since the January 12 earthquake. Waterborne in nature, cholera is spreading primarily from ingesting water contaminated with the Vibrio cholerae bacterium, usually carried in human feces. Symptoms include severe dehydration, diarrhea, intense abdominal pains, and fever. Limited pre-existing water and sanitation infrastructure, poor hygiene conditions, and overcrowding due to an influx of tens of thousands of Haitians displaced after the January quake has led to the cholera crisis, which now threatens to spread to other parts of the country. (Cholera cases have also been documented in La Gonâve, Arcahaie, and the Croix-des-Bouquet area of Port-au-Prince, albeit in lower numbers).
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In response to the outbreak, International Action has dispatched its team to Saint-Marc, a coastal town badly ravaged by a wave of cholera cases. The nonprofit has been focusing on eliminating waterborne diseases in Haiti since 2006. Approached by the Direction Nationale de l'Eau Potable et Assainissement—DINEPA, the Haitian water agency, to intervene in this crisis—International Action is installing innovative chlorinators on two of Saint-Marc's largest water reservoirs and public water stations. These chlorinators will protect local Haitians previously exposed to waterborne illnesses like typhoid and chronic diarrhea. Pre-set levels of chlorine are slowly dissolved into the water, effectively eliminating all disease-causing bacteria, including those responsible for cholera. Chlorine residuals in the water continue killing germs up to 48 hours after it is dispensed to locals' water buckets.
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International Action's lifesaving chlorination technology is safe and easy to maintain and requires no electricity. The chlorinators operate on the water's own gravity flow, so no additional equipment is necessary. Each chlorinator can easily disinfect water for more than 10,000 people and takes 1-2 hours to install on a pre-existing reservoir or water tank. International Action is on high alert during this critical time. It is offering its chlorinators and chlorine tablets, readily available at its Port-au-Prince warehouse, to any entity that needs them at no cost. Currently, the organization is providing clean water to over 421,500 people at 46 public water stations, orphanages, hospitals, and schools throughout Haiti. It aims to reach 2.5 million Haitians with clean water by 2013. International Action believes that clean water is a fundamental right. As such, it is committed to helping the impoverished gain access to this basic right. Please visit www.HaitiWater.Org or email Info@HaitiWater.Org for more information on International Action's Campaign for Clean Water in Haiti.
Intenational Action Joins Rubble Clearance Efforts
10/9/2010
International Action
www.HaitiWater.org
By Wesley Laîné
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In an effort to keep the spotlight on Haiti's precarious public health sector, International Action has expanded its water and sanitation operations to include a rubble clearance project in the vicinities of water kiosks and fountains in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Noting that the January earthquake damaged many water stations, there is no doubt that removing the mountains of rubble is critical to the reconstruction and restoration of water infrastructure in the impoverished neighborhoods that lack access to clean water. Undoubtedly, the organization's rubble clearance project was inspired by its continuous commitment to protect the public's health from preventable waterborne diseases. It is currently serving more than 370,000 people in 39 locations with safe, potable water.
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International Action's rubble clearance project, slated to begin on October 11, entails employing local Haitians to clear debris surrounding water kiosks and fountains. The project will start in the neighborhoods of Delmas 30, Trou-Sable, Delmas 31, Simmon Pelé, and Cité Soleil. The total budget, including salaries and equipment, is roughly $19,185 USD for the month of October. The organization hopes to secure more equipment, supplies, and funds from generous donors and foundations to expand the project to more critical neighborhoods. International Action is making the initial investment in equipments and materials such as wheelbarrows, shovels, and drills. Moreover, it is hiring 82 Haitian workers as the starting corps for the project. It strongly believes that the project will be beneficial to the vulnerable impoverished population because it will create substantial local employment and restore clean water to critical areas of the capital. Essentially, the project will empower locals to simultaneously earn a living wage and protect their communities from unnecessary waterborne illnesses.
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Responding to the shortcomings of the post-earthquake public health crisis, International Action's rubble clearance initiative is an innovative step towards restoring the most fundamental basic human need – clean water – in Haiti. Indeed, water infrastructure restoration is of utmost importance. The organization's Director in Haiti believes that there is a direct correlation with the restoration of clean water in affected neighborhoods and the increase in the number of people returning home from displaced persons camps. Clearly, International Action is an organization that believes that the contemplative must be matched with equal parts of action. As such, it is committed to creating sustainable solutions.
With the exception of public UN sources, reproduction or redistribution of the above text, in whole, part or in any form, requires the prior consent of the original source.
International Action Delivers Clean Water in P-au-P (1/22/2010)
Source: International Action
International Action Delivers 150,000 gallons of Clean Water in Port- au- Prince Each Day
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Since the Earthquake 10 days ago, an American non- governmental group has developed a system which delivers clean water to 150,000 residents of the Haitian capital each day.
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International Action has located 28 water storage tanks in Port- au- Prince neighborhoods which are undamaged and able to hold at least 1000 gallons. The group is now paying local water truck drivers to fill these tanks in the poorest parts of the city.
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International Action staff are adding chlorine to each truckload of water. Each truck holds 3000 gallons of water and can make 5 trips a day to many parts of the city.
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So far, International Action is renting 10 trucks each day and plans on renting still more as roads are cleared of earthquake debris. Since May of 2006, International Action has installed chlorinators on water tanks in Port- au- Prince. With 140 installations, the group has supplied clean water on a daily basis to 400,000 Haitians.
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In the first three days after the quake, Dalebrun Esther, the Haitian director of the group, supplied 20,000 gallons of water to the poorest neighborhoods using the groups' small truck tank. Now, he devotes his time to recruiting commercial truckers who normally haul water to wealthy neighborhoods and vendors who can pay higher sums for water. International Action is funding the truckers to reach poor neighborhoods in the crisis, and adding chlorine for safety. International Action is developing a plan for rebuilding at least 23 water tanks damaged by the quake, and adding water tanks in those neighborhoods currently without water tanks. This effort will reach 2 million residents in a period of 5 years.
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More funding, and more support from CAMEP – the city's water agency, and even help from the US military now in Haiti could speed up the schedule. Groups who want to cooperate can reach International Action at 202- 488- 0735. Staff are Lindsay Mattison, Youngmin Chang and Jeffrey Sejour (Jeff speaks Creole). Chlorinatos are made by Norweco at Norwalk, OH and chlorine tablets are madeby Arch Chemicals at Norwalk, CT
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Contact:
Lindsay Mattison
Executive Director
International Action
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808 "L" St. SE
Washington, DC 20003
Phone: 202-488-0735
Fax: 202-488-0736
www.haitiwater.org
clean water is a basic need for all
Donations...big and small will go a long way to help Haitians in such dire need for safe drinking water. I give a little money to another humanitarian charity for Haitians already. If others pitch in to your organization it would be a gift of love
Water for orphanage in Port Au Prince
Do you have any resources or contacts for acquiring a water tank for a small project in Port Au Prince.
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