Grantee Research Project Results
Final Report: Design of Sustainable Water Supply and Distribution System for Pignon, Haiti
EPA Grant Number: SU833549Title: Design of Sustainable Water Supply and Distribution System for Pignon, Haiti
Investigators: Pagilla, Krishna , Abdullahi, Abdulkamal B. , Nizich, Adam , Miot, Alexandre , Bielskus, Algirdas , Dike, Chukwuderaa , Venkatesan, Dhesikan , Radloff, Eric , Weissman, Kathryn , Rokita, Mark , Taylor, Mark , Ballog, Matt
Institution: Illinois Institute of Technology
EPA Project Officer: Page, Angela
Phase: I
Project Period: October 1, 2007 through May 29, 2008
Project Amount: $10,000
RFA: P3 Awards: A National Student Design Competition for Sustainability Focusing on People, Prosperity and the Planet (2007) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Pollution Prevention/Sustainable Development , P3 Challenge Area - Safe and Sustainable Water Resources , P3 Awards , Sustainable and Healthy Communities
Objective:
We created the Haiti Outreach student organization with a long-term vision, given the impoverished, underdeveloped environment the people of Haiti live in today.
All people deserve access to clean water, and an adequate level of education. We may not change the face of Haiti but we can certainly improve the lives of many -one community at a time.
Because of better awareness, more and more students are interested in sustainable development and are willing to volunteer to help communities in need. Our organization gives them the opportunity to learn and make a difference in Haiti; our poor neighbor situated only 600 miles away from Florida’s coast.
Haiti Outreach has been working in Haiti for over ten years, they are aware of the real needs of the population and the social context of their country. Combining their field experience, the expertise of the IIT community in many fields and the enthusiasm of the students will lead to sustainable solutions for the Haitian people. In addition to helping population in need, students are given an opportunity to apply their skills on real life team projects that challenge them outside of the classroom.
As of January 2008, we have had over forty students work on this project. Some students compute, design and draw; others manage, communicate and fundraise, but they all work towards the same goal: to make a difference and spread a bit of their good fortune to those less fortunate.
The main components of the project are as follows:
- Supply an adequate amount of safe water to the village of Pignon we be able to improve the living and working conditions for its 7,500 citizens. The current practice of going to the water source for collection is time consuming and exposes populations in lower altitudes to contract water borne diseases.
- Students from engineering, architecture and environmental science backgrounds will collaborate with the water committee of Pignon to collect data, and determine the capacity and service area of the proposed water distribution network.
- The design of the system will utilize sustainable methods of pumping, maximize existing infrastructure and it will incorporate methods of monitoring that will reduce waste from the network. Strengthening existing links between stakeholders and interested partners will further enhance the long-term sustainability of the proposed project.
- The multi-disciplinary hands-on learning experience this project requires will promote the value of collaboration. It will also challenge students to devise new methods of information and data collection in the context of a developing community.
Summary/Accomplishments (Outputs/Outcomes):
In conducting a survey of the population we found that Pignon is in need of a sustainable water supply and distribution system. We had no prior available data on the town, so we collected elevation data, figured water demand and modeled it against the supply, mapped the entire town, took a census of the population, and analyzed the flaws of the existing system. In examining the spring caps and stand pipe we found that it was necessary to repair them. It was also necessary to burry the pipe line connecting them in order to protect the pipe. We decided to use ramp pumps following the stand pipes. The ramp pump uses the energy from the drop of the water from the top of the stand pipe. This will not nearly be enough water to supply the town, so we designed a 15000gal buffer tank to collect the overflow from the ramp pump. A 125 gpm vertical pump will pump the water from buffer tank to the cistern. This requires lot of energy as it has to pump the water 140ft of head. A solar power system will power the pumps as Pignon does not have any other sources of reliable energy. In order to prevent water borne disease a disinfection system was designed which will inject the required chlorine dose of 2mg/l into the pipes. The 45000gal cistern standing above the town will gravity feed a PVC distribution network. This network will connect the cistern to 10 public water kiosks and private connections to 10% of the population. We have also laid out management strategies to make the system self sustainable. The people will pay for the water and this will cover the expenses of operating and maintaining the system.
Conclusions:
One projected outcome of the Haiti Outreach water project for Pignon, Haiti is to be a good barometer for future water projects for third world countries. One of the obvious direct benefits of this project is potable water for a large group of people, in a country where potable water is the exception rather than the norm. Having quick and easy access to potable water will lead to a variety of vast improvements in the quality of life, such as increased life expectancy, reduction in water-borne illnesses, and increase in usable time daily. The people of Pignon stand to see a positive change in all of the above when the proposed system is implemented. In addition to these, the citizens of Pignon will see an increase in investment opportunities in the local market, as clean water is an essential part of any restaurant, bar, or food service. This will lead to the citizens moving toward prosperity and naturally evolving economic opportunities. An immediate economic impact will be the creation of jobs involving the maintenance of the system. With these further economic opportunities, citizens will reinvest in Pignon and life will be better for all.
Proposed Phase II Objectives and Strategies:
The scope of the Phase II involves meeting with the Pignon water committee and finalizing preliminary design, completing respective detailed design, and implementation of the project. Our preliminary design is complete, so we need to discuss it with Pignon leaders and the water committee. Once we are in agreement and we finalize the preliminary design, we can begin work on a detailed design. This design will incorporate all details necessary for construction. While working on this detailed design, we will be fundraising and presenting our project everywhere possible. We have recently presented at the ISAWA, IWEA, and CSWEA conferences, making many contacts and receiving much support. We had a celebration dinner celebrating the progress of our project and this dinner had 250 attendees and we received over $10,000 in donations. Everything is working itself into place and it won’t be long before construction begins in Pignon. As the water system is under construction students will periodically be travelling to Pignon to monitor and supervise the project.
Supplemental Keywords:
Drinking water, groundwater, health benefits, pollution prevention, public good, pump, storage tank, gravity fed water system, ram pump, micro-turbines, source capping, waterborne disease, renewable energy, solar energy, Geographic Information System, Map, Haiti, Pignon, environmental engineering, civil engineering, mechanical engineering, technology for sustainable environment, sustainable development, waste minimization, education, training,Relevant Websites:
http://www.iit.edu/~haiti/ Exit
http://www.haitioutreach.org/ Exit
The perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.