Appropriate Projects

The project was to purchase and install a water filtration system for the children who attend the camp.

Travis reports:

In the autumn of 2012 the primary school in Dariganga soum Sukhbaatar aimag installed a water filtration system in the school kitchen. Prior to the installation, the school had no means of purifying water, aside from boiling.

As of May, 2013, the system has suffered no malfunctions, and has been a valuable asset to the school cooks. The cooks use the device every day for food preparation and providing tea for students and staff.

The extent to which the system is used varies from day to day. If the cooks choose to use the device for every meal on an average day, they can serve three hundred students. This accounts for all of the dormitory students as well as children enrolled in grades one through five.

The cooks have expressed a great deal of satisfaction with the system. They take pride in their modern system, and are very grateful for the help of Water Charity and the financial contribution of The SLOW LIFE Trust.

Community Description
Menka is a village with a small population that is spread over a vast land area. Menka people are predominately farmers and act as the breadbasket for much of Cameroon and many neighboring countries. They are a wonderfully hospitable people and incredible business/work oriented.

Presently the village has an older water system installed by HELVETAS during the early 1990's. As the village's population and land area has grown. The water scheme is becoming more and more inadequate, leading to severe water scarcity, even when supply is rationed.

Under the Menka Protected Spring Project – Cameroon, completed under Stephen’s direction, a protected spring was built in Menka. However, a tank is necessary in the water system to act as a storage mechanism. While the spring source is strong, it cannot consistently supply the community with water. In the morning or evening, when many people are prone to use water and draw from the system, the spring will completely empty out, and there will be water shortages.

Project Description
This will be Phase 2 of the Menka Community Water Project. This project is to build a 40-cubic-meter water storage tank.

The tank will be constructed with local stones and cement, and covered with concrete, reinforced with rebar. It will be approximately 2.3 meters tall and 5 meters in diameter. The tank will also include an aeration elbow and aeration pipes.

First, the community will dig the foundation. It is important to dig so that the tank's foundation is on firm soil/bedrock-- this is to protect the tank from sagging or tilting due to erosion. After this is done, the engineer will supervise the laying of the foundation and the floor of the tank.

The floor will be tilted approximately 3% toward the outlet pipe. After this, the walls will be built of two layers of large stones-- an inner and an outer layer. Each layer of cement is kept together by cement.

The community will be responsible for carrying stones, carrying sand, cement and all other construction materials, as well as providing both skilled and unskilled labor.

Water Charity funds will be used to pay for cement, sand. and engineer supervision.

The community has already received training from Better Family Foundation (BFF), and will receive refresher courses after community work days.

Project Impact
This project will eventually supply the Government School quarter of Menka Village. There will be 850 direct beneficiaries who live in this quarter of the village, and approximately 1,400 indirect beneficiaries who will benefit from increased water on the other side of the village.

Peace Corps Volunteer Directing Project
Stephen Cormier

Comments
This is an integral step in the development of a complete and sustainable system to provide water to the entire village.

Dollar Amount of Project
$555.00

Donations Collected to Date
$0.00

ADOPT THIS PROJECT BY CONTRIBUTING THE DOLLAR AMOUNT NEEDED BELOW

Donations of any amount will be appreciated. The full amount will give you "naming rights", if that is something you would like.

Any contributions in excess of the Dollar Amount of Project will be allocated to other projects directed by this PCV and/or projects of other PCVs in this country.

Dollar Amount Needed
$555.00

The project was to build a protected spring in Menka.

Stephen reports:

The project was a great success. We (the WMC, community and local NGO) set out to use the funding provided by Water Charity to complete a protected spring catchment to reinforce the village’s existing water system.

We accomplished everything we set out to do and more! By the end of the project, we were able to build the spring catchment and begin the foundation of the water storage tank.

After we received funding here in Cameroon I immediately phoned the WMC in Menka. They began planning work and sensitizing the community. Within a week’s time myself and Better Family Foundation (a local NGO I work with) arrived to Menka to begin the WMC training and work.

Seeing we will complete the project in phases we thought it best to also complete the training in phases. This also helped community members because this is an intense farming community—it supplies food to much of Cameroon and even other neighboring Central African countries.

The WMC had already arranged that the cement and sand be delivered to Menka from a nearby market town. This truly expedited the project. We were also very fortunate that the spring itself was not too large, making excavation relatively easy and allowing us to even have some left over cement.

With the remaining cement we found it best to not let it sit for months—putting it at risk for theft and/or to be wasted—we wanted to put it to use! After some discussion the community thought it best to begin building the 40 meter cubed water storage tank. We realized we would only be able to begin the very foundation of it but figured it the next best step seeing the balance of the project’s budget could only buy a few pipes.

This spring is one of maybe up to 4 phases of this project. The next phase (possibly two phases) will be to complete the water storage tank and then finally purchase the pipes to connect the addition to the existing line. It was decided to begin building the tank, even though there are no pipes connecting the spring and the tank. It was said that digging and laying the pipes (though 600+ meters) will take this village merely one single day of labor—while the tank will indeed take time. Nonetheless, we will also continue with training once the second wave of funding is received.

We are quite lucky that this is an incredibly serious and hardworking community. Their water management committee has been active for almost 30 years! It has been the most easy going project yet.

We are grateful to Stephen for completing this important project while maintaining the plan for the comprehensive program.

Community Description
Chiatura is a small town located in the beautiful, temperate Imereti region of Georgia. When accounting for all of its surrounding villages, Chiatura has a population of around 20,000. The main industry is the mining of manganese, a silvery-grey metal which resembles iron.

There are nine public schools in the area. Chiatura Public School #4 has approximately 360 students (grades 1-12) and 42 teachers. The 4-story school lacks basic water and sanitation.

The teacher’s bathroom, located on the first floor of school, lacks running water, electricity, and ventilation.

Project Description
This project is to renovate the teacher’s bathroom at the school.

Piping will be installed to bring water from the source to the bathroom. Water will then be supplied to the toilet and sink. Electricity will be made available in the bathroom for lighting. A small window will be cut into the wall for ventilation. A small soap box will be installed to be used for handwashing.

All of the work will be done by the father of one of the students at a reduced rate.

Water Charity funds will be used to purchasing the pipe, a new sink basin, and the electrical fixtures, as well as to pay for the labor.

Project Impact
360 students and 42 teachers will benefit the project, as well as those who visit the school for meetings and events.

Peace Corps Volunteer Directing Project
Danae Olsen

Comments
This project represents an important step toward providing the school with a basic level of hygiene and sanitation.

Dollar Amount of Project
$550.00

Donations Collected to Date
$0.00

ADOPT THIS PROJECT BY CONTRIBUTING THE DOLLAR AMOUNT NEEDED BELOW

Donations of any amount will be appreciated. The full amount will give you "naming rights", if that is something you would like.

Any contributions in excess of the Dollar Amount of Project will be allocated to other projects directed by this PCV and/or projects of other PCVs in this country.

Dollar Amount Needed
$550.00

The project was to install a new rainwater storage tank system, composed of 6 tanks, at the school.

Bruce reports:

The Ang Chak High School Rainwater Storage Project has been successfully finished.

The first week, the contracted mason built a form for the foundation out of bricks. This was filled with broken stone and then concrete to make a solid pad to place the tanks on. Then, the crew used ropes and bars to lift the base piping pieces into place. Holes were drilled at the base of each tank to allow them to be connected with 1" PVC piping. Then, all the joints between the slab, tanks, and PVC were grouted with cement.

In addition, a berm of cement was built over each PVC tank connector to protect it. Then, still just using manpower, the upper sections of the tanks were wrestled into place. All the joints between tank sections were sealed with cement grout. Once all the tanks were completed, the exterior was coated with cement slip and the interiors were sealed with rubberized coating.

The only work left for the second week was the installation of rain gutters on the adjacent building...and the routing of the rain gutters to the tank lids with 3" PVC piping. This was completed just in time for the first big rainstorm of this monsoon season and the tanks are nearly full!

The school directors and the school maintenance men all went out of their way to tell me how wonderful it is to have these tanks providing water to the latrines and gardens. They asked me to convey their appreciation to Appropriate Projects and the donors.

We, in turn, express our gratitude to Bruce for successfully completing another remarkable project. We again thank Randy, Debi, and Ian Panke for providing the funding for the project, and also Bruce’s other family and friends for providing additional funds to be used for future projects.

The project was to build a new bathroom at the health center.

Christin reports:

The project was finished according to plan within weeks, making sure to finish before the extended Khmer New Year holiday.

Upon receipt of the funds from Water Charity, the health center expedited all the work. The materials were bought within days and stacked outside the health center, and they broke ground on the project that same day.

During construction, the health center stayed true to the original proposal, except for one addition: They added a shower fixture in one of the bathrooms to provide for the personal hygiene of the patients.

The bathrooms were built as an independent structure directly outside of the back door of the health center. They are being kept in clean condition, with electricity to light them during night time needs.

The cost of the project was higher than anticipated, as they faced higher costs on the wood and electrician, but the health center supplemented the funds.

The health center staff is excited about the finished project.

We are grateful to Christin for completing this project, and again wish to thank the Anonymous donor for providing the funds.

The project was to protect and build up two natural springs located in the mountains to provide safe water for the villages.

Emily reports:

My Spring Well Protect has been a huge success! The accomplishment can be seen in the video below:

Under the direction of the Mfera Community Action Group, the springs were built up using pipes and cement to provide a sanitary area to retrieve water.

A small covered dam was built, with one hole and piping coming from the side of structure. This pipe provides a continuous gravity-fed water supply, flowing over a drainage system, leading to an area for washing clothes, and making water accessible for the local community garden.

Before, we had a hole in the ground filled with dirty water, accessible to animals and disease, serving 800 people daily in a high cholera area. Now, a 40-liter bucket can be filled in 30 seconds with clean water with minimal work.

The community was very thrilled and thankful! I told them that the charity is from people who believe that everyone in the world deserves clean water! They wanted to share their thanks!

We are grateful to Emily for completing this terrific project.