April, 2023: Silungai B Community Spring Protection Complete!

Silungai B Community now has access to clean water! Thanks to your donation, we transformed Pondi Spring into a flowing source of naturally filtered water. Our team also trained the community on improved sanitation and hygiene practices. Together, these components will unlock the opportunity for community members to live better, healthier lives.

"The status of this community has changed due to this new baby we have, 'newly constructed spring.' He has brought joy, and I feel [my] life has changed," said 58-year-old farmer Geter Pondi.

"We will access clean water, and this will impact me positively. This will help us have good health."

Geter collecting water at the protected spring.

Geter continued, "My grandchildren are currently enjoying fetching water from here. They have filled every water container in my house. I have a small kitchen garden. Thus, I can send them to get water from the spring and water it so that we can have a continuous supply of vegetables."

Children were just as excited as adults about the new water point.

Kellen T.

"Before construction of this spring which is not long ago, we fetched water here for drinking, cooking, washing, and bathing, but it was not clean. It had algae. We felt we were not drinking the right water," said 10-year-old Kellen T.

"But that has changed. [I] am sure of [the] quality of water because it is clean, and even when playing with it, we won't have worries."

Preparing for Spring Protection

Community members worked together to source and carry all locally available construction materials to the spring. These included bricks, sand, stones, and fencing poles. Some people also chiseled away at large rocks to break them into gravel. Because people must carry most items by hand, the material collection process can take weeks to months.

When the community was ready, we sent a lorry to deliver the remaining construction materials, including cement, plastic tarps, and hardware. Then, our construction artisan and field officers deployed to the spring to begin work. Individual households provided meals throughout each day to sustain the work team.

From Open Source to Protected Spring: A Step-by-Step Process

First, we cleared and excavated the spring area. Next, we dug a drainage channel below the spring and several runoff diversion channels above and around the spring. These help to divert surface contaminants away.

To ensure community members could still access water throughout the construction process, we also dug temporary channels around the construction site from the spring's eye. This allowed water to flow without disrupting community members' tasks or the construction work. Excavation created space for setting the spring's foundation, made of thick plastic tarp, wire mesh, concrete, and waterproof cement.

After establishing the base, we started brickwork to build the headwall, wing walls, and stairs. Once the walls had grown tall enough, we began one of the most crucial steps: setting the discharge pipe. The discharge pipe needs to be positioned low enough in the headwall. Hence, the water level never rises above the spring's eye, yet high enough to allow room for the average jerrycan (a 20-liter container) to sit beneath the pipe without making contact.

If we place the discharge pipe too high above the spring's eye, back pressure could force water to emerge elsewhere. Too low, and community members can not access the water easily. We embedded the pipe using clay (or mortar when clay is in short supply) and placed it at an incline to ensure water flows in the right direction.

In coordination with brickwork, we pitched stones on both sides of the spring's drainage channel. We then cemented and plastered each stone, forming the rub walls. These walls discourage people and animals from standing in that area, which could cause soil erosion and a clogged drainage area.

We then cemented and plastered both sides of the headwall and wing walls. These finishing layers reinforce the brickwork and prevent water in the reservoir from seeping through the walls. In turn, enough pressure builds in the reservoir box to push water out through the discharge pipe.

As the headwall and wing walls cured, we cemented and plastered the stairs and installed four tiles beneath the discharge pipe. The tiles protect the concrete from the falling water's erosive force while beautifying the spring and facilitating easy cleaning of the spring floor.

The final stage of construction is backfilling the reservoir box behind the discharge pipe. We cleared the collection box of any debris that may have fallen during construction. Then we redirected the temporary diversion channels back into the reservoir box, channeling water into this area for the first time. We closed all other exits to force water through the discharge pipe only.

We filled the reservoir area with the large, clean stones community members had gathered, arranging them in layers like a well-fitting puzzle. We covered the rocks with a thick plastic tarp to minimize potential contamination sources, then piled enough dirt on top to compensate for future settling.

Community members transplanted grass onto the backfilled soil to help prevent erosion. Finally, the collection area was fenced to discourage any person or animal from walking on it. Compaction can lead to disturbances in the backfill layers and potentially compromise water quality.

The construction process took about two weeks of work and patience to allow the cement and plaster to finish curing. As soon as the spring was ready, people got the okay from their local field officers to fetch water.

We officially handed over the spring to mark the community's ownership of the water point. Happiness, thanksgiving, and appreciation were the order of the day, flowing in all directions.

"After [the] training session at the spring, the water user committee and water users held a thanksgiving meeting in the presence of the facilitator to offer their words of thanks to the organization. They were amazed at [the] kind of work done and sang a song of thanksgiving," said our field officer Amos Emisiko.

Training on Health, Hygiene, and More

Together with the community, we found their preferred date for training while considering other community calendar events, such as the agricultural season and social events. We requested a representative group of community members to attend training and relay the information learned to the rest of their families and friends.

When the day arrived, facilitators Mildred and Amos deployed to the site to lead the event. Fifteen people attended the training, including ten women and five men. We held the training under an indigenous shade tree.

Training about the spring maintenance.

We covered several topics, including community participation in the project, leadership and governance, personal and environmental hygiene, water handling and treatment, spring maintenance, dental hygiene, the ten steps of handwashing, disease prevention, and how to make and use handwashing stations.

During the leadership and governance session, we held an election for the newly formed water user committee leaders, who will oversee the maintenance of the spring. We also brainstormed income-generating activities. Community members can now start a group savings account for any future minor repairs to the spring and a cooperative lending group, enabling them to develop small businesses.

"I am blessed and very grateful to you and your organization. The training was good, learning from hygiene and sanitation to soap making and water treatment. [It] has changed my perception and what I thought I knew. The knowledge and skills I have acquired will help me improve on hygiene and sanitation and even teach my grandchildren," said Geter (quoted earlier).

Soap-making session.

Soap making stood out as an interesting topic during the training. One of the participants wanted to learn the chemical names of the various reagents because she has a passion for chemistry and is still in high school. The quality of the soap participants made during the training was great, and many hope to use the skills they learned in the future. The chair lady of the water user committee joked that the soap was so good she would use a big container to collect plenty.

Conclusion

This project required a substantial collaboration between our staff, our in-country teams, and the community members themselves. When an issue arises concerning the spring, the water user committee is equipped with the necessary skills to rectify the problem and ensure the water point works appropriately. However, if the issue is beyond their capabilities, they can contact their local field officers to assist them.

Also, we will continue to offer them unmatchable support as a part of our monitoring and maintenance program. We walk with each community, problem-solving together when they face challenges with functionality, seasonality, or water quality. Together, all these components help us strive for enduring access to reliable, clean, and safe water for this community.

With your contribution, one more piece has been added to a large puzzle of water projects. In our target areas, we’re working toward complete coverage of reliable, maintained water sources within a 30-minute round trip for each community, household, school, and health center. With this in mind, search through our upcoming projects to see which community you can help next!

Thank you for making all of this possible!

February, 2023: Silungai B Community Spring Protection Underway!

A severe clean water shortage in Silunga B Community drains people’s time, energy, and health. Thanks to your generosity, we’re working to install a clean water point and much more.

Get to know this community through the introduction and pictures we’ve posted, and read about this water, sanitation, and hygiene project. We look forward to reaching out with more good news!