Water Treatment Systems for Emergency Management

Clean Water for the Communities You Serve

Water systems have proven most effective when implemented in central community locations such as medical clinics or schools.  When clean water is distributed in these types of facilities it becomes a visible, accessible and integral part of daily community life.

The Villager-12™ can produce up to 7,000 gallons of safe drinking water per day, assuming a 10 hour production period.  Additional water can be produced by simply running the equipment for additional hours, serving a community ranging from 500 to 3,000 residents.  Utilizing both solar power and grid electricity, First Water purification systems are the ideal fit for community facilities in the developing world.   The various applications of First Water equipment have been well documented, however, the most effective and productive use of these systems have been seen in schools and medical clinics.

Schools around the world regularly rely on a Villager-12™ filtration system as their primary source of clean potable water.  Children who attend the school obviously get the benefit of clean water, which has been shown to improve physical growth and academic performance.  However, being able to bring home clean water to their families has added benefit for them and serves to multiply the effects of clean water access.  It also helps to reinforce the benefit of children attending school and the parents commitment to education.  When a student attends school and then brings home safe drinking water, children attend school more, their academic and physical health prosper, the women of the household do not have to spend hours fetching water,and everyone in the household can benefit from improved health.  Everyone wins.

Medical clinics in the developing world are also effective locations to install First Water purification systems.  Similar to the multiplier effect which schools have for the distribution of clean water, medical clinics can offer safe drinking water to their patients as an added benefit to their clinical visits.   In addition to check-ups and medication, patients may collect clean water for their families as well.  The distribution methods are endless, however what is clear is that schools and medical clinics create perfect communal fetching points and thus ideal applications for First Water Equipment.

In a 2009 project in the Dominican Republic, rural medical clinic La Clinica Buen Samaritano, finished a clean water project utilizing the Villager-12™ from First Water.   The medical clinic is providing free access to clean water for all 2,900 residents of the community.   Clinica Buen Samaritano opens its doors for five hours per day allowing residents to fetch clean water free of charge.  International NGO’s and the local doctor have all documented the dramatic effect of this one unit on the community.  As the central institution in the community, the medical clinic is the most productive and efficient facility to house a Villager-12™ filtration system.  Clean water, together with health care and medication, is the ideal way to raise basic health levels in a developing  community.