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Commercial Introduction of
The BioSand Water Filter™
Background
BACKGROUND | HOUSEHOLD SYSTEMS |
BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES
The Case for Clean Water
School children in Mole, Ghana collect water from a local pond,
filled
with crocodiles & bathing elephants
Water supplied or otherwise
available for domestic use in most of the warm climate
developing countries is adequate for:
- laundry
- bathing (sometimes not)
- toilets
- household cleaning
but not for:
- drinking
- cooking and washing of
fresh vegetables
- washing eating utensils,
cooking utensils and eating area
- medical procedures
Often water is available
irregularly and in an unpredictable fashion.
A family in
Dhaka, Bangladesh collect water during a flood.
WHO Millennium Report
At the beginning of 2000, 1.1
billion people were without access to improved water supply.
The majority of these people
live in Asia and Africa, where fewer than one-half of all
Asians have access to improved sanitation and two out of
five Africans lack improved water supply.
Rural water services continue
to lag far behind urban services.
Water Treatment Sustainability
Community water treatment and
distribution systems are difficult to sustain.
Many communities are simply
not accustomed to collecting fees (taxes) for any reason
including the operation and maintenance of a community water
treatment system, much less a community water distribution
system.
Many of the same individuals are quite prepared to purchase
safe drinking water if it's available to them.
Most of the countries in the world do not maintain economies
capable of establishing and sustaining water treatment and
distribution systems that can guarantee safe drinking water
delivery to the home.
The Rural Dilemma
It's common for rural
consumers to find themselves obliged to use a water supply
that's very difficult to
treat to a safe drinking water standard.
Point-of-use treatment
systems may be available - but not affordable. The required
treatment may not be expensive but it may be complex to use.
Often key treatment elements may need to be replaced
frequently and are not readily available.
Point-of-use treatment
systems appropriate for use in urban environments may not be
practical.
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