Iron-amended Biosand Water Filter in Nepal Tommy Ka Kit Ngai, M.Eng., Ph.D. Director, Research Learning CAWST Bay 12, 2916 – 5th Avenue NE Calgary, Alberta T2A 6K4, Canada Tel: ext

Team members CAWST is a Canadian-based nonprofit that provides education, training and consulting services to practitioners, including governments, non-governmental organizations, UN- agencies, to initiate and/or expand their water and sanitation programs. Since 2001, our clients have impacted 6.0 million people with better water or sanitation technologies. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a leading engineering research institution consistently ranked as having one of the top Environmental Engineering and Science (EE&S) programs in the U.S. ENPHO is a nationally-recognized technically-oriented NGO established in Nepal and operated by Nepali citizens. Since 1991, ENPHO has successfully demonstrated and disseminated a wide variety of appropriate water, sanitation, and energy technologies across the country.

Project goal Provide safe drinking water in two impoverished rural villages in Nepal where disadvantaged and marginalized households suffer greatly from water-borne diseases and the associated economic consequences caused by unsafe water

The challenge Water source is contaminated by all three classes of water-borne contaminants (protozoa, bacteria, and viruses). Conventional technologies are cost-prohibitive and unsustainable in this rural mountainous region. There is not any low-cost, simple and user friendly technology appropriate for the region and is capable of removing all contaminants.

The solution We recently developed a revolutionary technique of modifying the conventional Biosand Filter (BSF) with iron particles to reduce all three classes of contaminants, including viruses. Proven success in Guatemala

Scientific principle Both viruses and sand particles are negatively charged. Viruses stays in water. Iron particles are positively charged, thus remove viruses from water. Iron Particle

Advantages Simple operation & maintenance Inexpensive ($30/filter serving a family) Long-lasting (15+ years) Socially well-accepted Constructed by local technicians using locally available materials such as gravel, sand, and cement. No replacement parts No external energy or reagent required

Project plans 1.Providing training on iron particle amendment and entrepreneurial skills to the current network of biosand filter social entrepreneurs in Nepal. 2.Conduct participatory education workshops in project villages on water, sanitation, hygiene, health, and filter operation and maintenance. 3.Construct 150 filters by leveraging labour and material contributions from villagers. 4.Conduct on-going household visits to test filter performance and to ensure consistent, correct long-term use. 5.Update CAWST educational material regarding the iron-particle technique. 6.Share the results through Science Direct and CAWST’s network of clients in 60+ countries.

What the prize means to our team Winning this award means a lot to our team. We are particularly pleased that: Reed Elsevier is supporting the Government of Nepal and other development agencies operating in Nepal in providing safe water to reduce illnesses and deaths. Over 1000 disadvantaged or marginalized villagers will obtain safe drinking water using an improved and sustainable technology. The capacity of local entrepreneurs and government will be built. Reed Elsevier is recognizing both the potential of the iron- amended biosand filter to address the technological gaps in household water treatment, and the proven impact of CAWST’s technology transfer model to disseminate the technology globally.

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