"Water is fundamental for life and health. The human right to water is indispensable for leading a healthy life in human dignity. It is a pre-requisite to the realization of all other human rights." -UN Committee on Economic, Cultural, and Social Rights

Helping Others

After looking at the mark a river-flood leaves (see The Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup), we ask the question "What mark do we leave?" This leads into the area of Human Rights and more specifically The Rights of Children. Students at Glendale Elementary School raised money to place Biosand Water Filters in homes and orphanges in the Dominican Republic. See the video Rick Castiglione sent them when he delivered the water filters.

Biosand Filters

What are they?
The BioSand filters are relatively simple, require little maintenance, and are inexpensive to produce. These quality are what has lead to their wide spread use in humanitarian areas. Developed by Dr. David Manz while teaching at the University of Calgary, the BioSand filter removes 95 to 99 percent of harmful contaminants.

Most models installed in homes are capable of filtering 20-60 litres of water per hour, while some can filter 20 litres a minute. The BioSand filters can remove both biological and chemical contaminents, and a 2007 study conducted at the University of North Carolina has shown that the use of the filters can reduced dirrheal disease by up to 40%.

The BioSand filters produce water that is odorless, colorless, and tasteless. The water can be used for sanitation, drinking, food preparation, and hygiene.

Samaritan's purse has installed 70, 000 filters world wide, and has created a new program, called "Turn on the Tap", that intends to install 65, 000 filters by 2010. They report filters that have been running effectively for ten years.

How do they work?
Most filters are constructed out of concrete. Gravel and sand are layered inside of the filter. Water is poured into the top of the filter, and is moved through the filter by gravity.

T he top layer removes large contaminants, like sticks and leaves. The initial centimeters of sand trap micro-organisms, which collect and develop into a food chain as different organisms prey on one another. This food chain is the biological layer, and goes on to trap and feed on other contaminants in the water. As more and more organisms are caught in this layer, the layer becomes more effective in trapping other diseases and viruses.

The other layers of sand and gravel filter out other contaminants. Over time, the filter may get clogged, but stirring or skimming the top layer of sand usually fixes the problem.

Once the water reaches the bottom layer of gravel, it travels through a pipe to a faucet, providing clean water that is essential to the health of the family.