Seasonal streams (and the sand they carry) are trapped by sub-surface dams, replenishing the water table and allowing for hand-dug wells.

When climate change means drought, its effects are devastating for water resource management and food security.  Just ask farmers in Southeastern Kenya. Our work in this region is among communities who have relied on farming from generation to generation. In this region, rain was never a problem in the past but now it rains a few times a year and flash floods momentarily fill dry river-beds again.  Water comes and goes, and things go back to dry.

Sand dams are miraculous and we’ve watched this technology restore the desert back into the Garden of Eden. Almost completely led by community-supplied sweat and materials, and under the supervision of engineers, dams are strategically placed within those dry river-beds. The next time it rains, flood-waters are trapped. What remains is water and sand – and that’s where the magic happens.

If you’ve ever been to the beach, you know what happens when you dig a foot down into the sand.  You hit water.  That’s because sand is remarkably good at holding water.

With a sand dam, this trapped sand begins to hold millions of gallons of rainwater. Soon enough, sand reaches the top of the dam, allowing water to continue downstream – where it meets the next dam. The result? A regional water table is restored. A new opportunity to implement dug wells to provide safe water (because the earth acts as a natural filter) is created. And, farmers can get back to what they do best – growing food!

A reliable, naturally flowing spring is made safe by protecting the source, and creating easy community access.

In many communities, natural springs exist. They always have. Water seems to be coming from nowhere, but we know it’s really coming from rocks and the earth – which acts as a natural filtration system for water. And, because springs provide reliable water, they are the go-to for a community’s water source. However, reliable doesn’t mean safe.  Left open as they are, bad things happen to really good water sources – things like surface contamination, animal and human waste and rain runoff. The solution is to protect the source. First, you excavate around the exact source area of the spring. Then, you build a protective reservoir for water flow, which leads to a concrete spring box and collection area. Safe water typically flows year-round and there is very limited ongoing maintenance needed! You’ve just helped make reliable water, reliable and safe water.

Community education and self-discovery about hygiene and sanitation concepts lead to improved health.

Because things like wells, springs and dams are so tangible and so easily photographed – we often think those things are the whole point.  Truth be told, there are plenty of contractors who can simply install water and sanitation hardware and nothing else.

Improved health is the point. That’s why hygiene and sanitation training is so critical. The Water Project utilizes many different methods for this training, depending on the community/institution, program and country. The point is education… leading to self-discovery within the community…leading to new health habits. Training topics always include things like disease transmission, personal hygiene and cleanliness, proper disposal of waste and proper water storage methods.

While we know this training provides thoughtful engagement, the community is the lead partner here. Our role is to make clear to them the power they have within themselves to bring about improved health.

A specialized drilling team drills into the earth in search of an underground aquifer.

Girls and women walk long distances for water when sometimes, safe water is right under their feet! Underground rivers, called aquifers, often contain a constant supply of safe water – but you have to get to it.  Enter, the drilled well. There are many forms of drilling, depending on what you are drilling through. No matter what machine or piece of equipment is used, all drilling is aiming for a borehole that reaches into an aquifer. If the aquifer has water - and after the well is developed, sanitary seal and concrete apron installed - we’re able to pull water to the surface utilizing a hand-pump. If all goes as planned, the community is left with a safe, closed water source providing around 5 gallons of water a minute through a hand-pump.

(Note: Dry wells are a reality – you really don’t know the quality and quantity of water until you finish drilling and start test pumping the well.  Hand-Pumps associated with drilled and dug wells currently require substantial ongoing support from The Water Project.)