Clean water: The answer lies in the sun

By Erick Wamanji

We skip over puddles in Makina village in Kibera, Nairobi, and bump into women embroiled in a scuffle at a water buying point as children cheer.

In Kajiado women have taken to the cheap and effective method of water treatment using solar energy. [PHOTO: ERICK WAMANJI]

Here, water is prized although most of it is contaminated. But residents may soon bid farewell to battles with waterborne diseases, courtesy of new water treatment concept — Solar Water Disinfection (Sodis).

This simple technology makes use of the sun to disinfect water. A maximum of two litres of water is poured into transparent plastic bottles and exposed to the sun for six hours, or two days when cloudy. Thereafter, it is safe to drink.

And Sodis is as popular in Kibera as it is in the remotest parts of Kajiado and Samburu, The Standard on Sunday has learnt. This technology is simple yet very effective.

In Kajiado and Samburu, the concept was introduced by International Community for the Relief of Starvation and Suffering (Icross).

In Embolei village, off Magadi Road — about 70km from Nairobi —Sodis is a lifesaver.

"We cannot drink water without burning (exposed) it in the sun. Our water is not clean and this makes children vulnerable to diarrhoea. We’re now controlling the situation," says Ms Hellen Mepukori.

Gift for the poor

Residents thank Icross’ officials, Dr Mike Meegan and Prof David Morley, who collaborated with the Royal College of Surgeons to carry out Sodis research. Their findings have been published in Lancet, one of the world’s prestigious scientific journals.

The researchers concluded that Sodis could be the answer to the chronic water-borne diseases in Africa. Currently, plastic water bottles grace manyatta rooftops in Kajiado, just as they dot the rusty roofs of Kibera and Mukuru slums in Nairobi.

In Nairobi, Kenya Water for Health Organisation (Kwaho) runs the initiative. Kwaho educates residents about water safety and how to use the Sodis technology. School children are also targeted in this campaign because they are considered important agents of change. "We have reached five villages in Kibera. We hope to complete the rest in due course," says Kaltuma Tahir, a Kwaho official.

The programme has been in Kibera for the last four years.

"Sodis is cheap and effective way of water treatment, especially for people in slums," she says.

Ms Lorna Kakai, a Kibera resident, says cases of typhoid and diarrhoea are no longer common.

intensive campaign

It is women like Kakai, who are considered key in the campaign to provide safe drinking water, that Kwaho targets.

Tahir believes women are influential in this campaign, as they are at the heart of domestic chores and wellbeing.

Some hotels have offered to collect and donate empty bottles to Kwaho. The bottles are distributed, at a token fee, to residents. Sodis technology has received support from World Health Organisation (WHO).

WHO research indicates that diarrhoea alone is responsible for the death of some 1.8 million people every year, mostly in poor countries.

The UN agency notes Sodis can be an effective way of providing safe drinking water during emergencies like the Tsunami, earthquakes or hurricanes.

Fighting poverty

In their research, Meegan and Morley discovered Sodis technology works even for murky water.

"Laboratory studies of solar disinfection using plastic bottles have demonstrated significant reductions in bacterial contamination even in highly turbid water," they note.

Says Meegan: "We cannot reduce suffering and poverty if our children continue to die from preventable diseases like diarrhoea. We want a world where children will be safe and allowed an opportunity to grow into productive adults," he says.

In Kibera, locals have formed groups of Sodis users. These groups are instrumental in encouraging others to embrace the technology.

"We collect data from clinics and chemists. It seems cases of waterborne diseases are reducing here," says Tahir.

So far, filtration, chlorination, desalination and heating are the popular ways of water treatment. However, these technologies are expensive.

For instance, in Kibera, due to high population, poor waste disposal and ignorance, it is difficult to sustain provision of safe water.

"Initially, I was buying water treatment chemicals. I used to spend about Sh150 every month. That was expensive. Besides, the chemicals left bad taste and smell. Drinking water was never enjoyable," says Ms Cynthia Museve, a hairdresser.

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