Pure Water for The World Announces Water Filter Donations for Haiti Relief Efforts
Pure Water for the World, which has been working in Haiti since early 2008, is intensifying its efforts to provide clean water for the people of Haiti in the wake of the January 12 earthquake. The local staff has been distributing its stock of ceramic filters, made in the Dominican Republic by FilterPure (www.filterpurefilters.org), and the two organizations have announced a doubling of production in the Dominican Republic and plans for fabrication of ceramic filters at Pure Water’s bio-sand filter factory in Port-au-Prince.
Pure Water for the World, in partnership with local organizations, brings hygiene education and clean water to schools, clinics and orphanages, particularly in areas with little infrastructure and access to clean water. Its simple bio-sand filters, which do not require electricity and have no moving parts, can remove worms, parasites and nearly all bacteria and
toxins. A recent Partnership with the U.S. Agency for International Development in Cité Soleil, a shanty town in Port-au-Prince, provided filters to 250 schools.
Pure Water for the World teamed up with FilterPure a year ago to distribute its ceramic water filter in Haiti. Like the bio-sand filter, the ceramic filter is simple, does not require electricity and has been shown to be highly effective against contaminates and bacteria. The ceramic filter is smaller and more portable, making it particularly valuable in the current crisis.
The FilterPure filter weighs about 8 pounds and is the size of a 5 gallon utility bucket. Contaminated water is poured into the ceramic insert, which purifies the water for drinking as it seeps through the insert into the plastic container. The flow rate ranges from 1 to 3 liters per hour.
Pure Water for the World’s bio-sand filter factory suffered some damage from the earthquake, but repairs are underway so that bio-sand filter production can be resumed and capacity added to manufacture the ceramic FilterPure filters.
Pure Water for the World and FilterPure know that a long period of recovery and rebuilding will follow the current crisis and are committed to a long-term presence in Haiti. Both the bio-sand and ceramic filters will be critical for households and institutions in the period before any adequate public water system can be built to serve the people in areas affected by the earthquake.
