USGBC-CF

Be a HERO to Haiti

January 18, 2010

The Health & Education Relief Organization (HERO) is partnering with Engineers Without Borders (EWB) Chapter of the University of Central Florida to perform a water source study for Mare Brignol in the Southeast Department of Haiti. The study will determine the most cost effective and technically feasible way of providing water to the hilly area where approximately 6,800 people live. The area is approximately 2,000 feet above sea level on the main road between Marigot and Belle Anse. The study will address both quantity (possible concrete cistern for storage) and quality (water treatment).

The current water source is a spring which depends upon rainfall in the area. The volume varies considerably from season to season. Individual family members must walk up to seven hours each way to get water. Since residents wash clothes and bathe in the water, and animals are not prevented from defecating in it, the water source is also a source of disease. Click here to learn where Mare Brignol is.

In December 2008 select EWB at UCF and HERO team members visited Mare Brignol for a pre-solution community health assessment. From the information gathered, project design began. In March 2009 the EWB at UCF team made a second visit and executed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the community outlining the responsibilities of each party to ensure a successful project. During the same trip, a Haitian contractor met with the team and community and surveyed the site. The contractor will build the cistern with labor provided by the Mare Brignol residents. The final design will be approved by EWB USA Summer 2009 and then implemented.

Pollution of water resources in Haiti is a significant problem. Contamination of surface water and shallow ground water aquifers is common throughout the country. Raw sewage and industrial wastes contaminate water sources. For example, 18 wells drawing from mountain springs used as a main source of water for Port-au-Prince reportedly are contaminated with raw sewage. Two of the springs near Petionville have outhouses within 4 meters of the springheads. Pipeline distribution systems contribute to contamination because of breaks in the lines caused by residents illegally tapping into the system. There is no municipal sewage system in Haiti, and waste often flows into gutters, streams, and storm drains to contaminate surface water, the shoreline, and beaches. The major drainage canal serving the capital runs to the Bay of Port-au-Prince via Cite Soliel.

The UCF students plan to build a water catchment system that will take water from the roofs of two community buildings and store it in oversized cisterns. That will be most beneficial in the dry season, from January to March, when five communities with 25,000 residents share the small, contaminated mountain spring. A basic filtration and disinfection system also will be installed. The construction of the systems will be performed by a local Haitian contractor using workers from Mare Brignol. The students hope to return to Haiti to supervise and assist in constructing the systems in late spring or summer. The project will also include the construction of composting latrines, as well as educational initiatives for the improvement of health and hygiene. An important objective of the project to keep the systems simple so residents can operate and maintain them after the students leave.

The project is the first international venture for UCF’s Engineers Without Borders chapter. The students chose the Haiti project because they wanted to help a country that is the poorest in the Western Hemisphere and that has a large immigrant population in Central Florida.

Source:

HERO is partnered with Engineers Without Borders (EWB), and the local Orlando UCF chapter working in Haiti; there is a link on the 1^st website below to make a donation.

http://www.herononprofit.org/

http://www.ewbucf.org/Project.html

http://news.ucf.edu/UCFnews/index?page=article&id=0024004102082b6ee011e4c7dabcc007cb3