Is Fluoride Removal Affordable in Rural Ethiopia? Lars Osterwalder, 6 th RWSN Forum, Kampala 2011 Eawag: Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology
Eawag Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology “ Optimization and acceptance of fluoride removal options for drinking water in rural Ethiopia” Case study of the cross-cutting project: Water Resource Quality (WRQ) www.wrq.eawag.ch
Fluoride and Human Health Skeletal Fluorosis: Joint stiffening, deformation of bones Dental Fluorosis Coloring and brittling of enamel, tooth decay, social stigmatization WHO: 1.5 mg/L Beneficial Protects against caries
Project Area & Partners Ethiopia - Oromia Region Oromia Self-Help Organization (OSHO) Swiss Interchurch Help (HEKS) Addis Ababa University (AAU) Kenya - Rift Valley Province Nakuru Defluoridation Company (NDC)
Project Area & Partners Ethiopia - Oromia Region Oromia Self-Help Organization (OSHO) In the Ethiopian Rift Valley alone around 8.5 Million people Swiss Interchurch Help (HEKS) Addis Ababa University (AAU) are at risk of developing dental or skeletal fluorosis Kenya - Rift Valley Province Nakuru Defluoridation Company (NDC)
Filter Material – Nakuru Technique Bone char and calcium phosphate pellets produced at NDC 10 - 14 days ~ 300 ° C
Community Filter in Wayo Gabriel (Oromia Region, Ethiopia) WHO Guideline
Community Filter in Wayo Gabriel (Oromia Region, Ethiopia) The „ Nakuru Technique‟ is easy and safe to operate: - No electricity required WHO Guideline - No addition and mixing of chemicals by the operator
Financial Sustainability Filter media replacements Salary of operator Raw water (e.g. pumping, infrastructure …) Water committee expenses Maintenance of filter Amortization of filter Monitoring Transportation (e.g. when replacing filter media…)
Financial Sustainability Filter media replacements Salary of operator Raw water (e.g. pumping, infrastructure …) Water committee expenses Can the community afford to pay for all these costs? Maintenance of filter Amortization of filter Monitoring Transportation (e.g. when replacing filter media…)
Financial Sustainability ETB = Ethiopian Birr, 1 USD = 18 ETB 0.50 ETB for 20 L Costumer 0.50 ETB 1.00 ETB 1.50 ETB Operator
Financial Sustainability After 1 Month 2’000 jerry cans sold Water meter: 50 m 3 Water Committee Operator 20 ETB/m 3 1’000 ETB
Financial Sustainability BANK 650 ETB Electricity 150 ETB/month Water Committee Operator 200 ETB/month
Financial Sustainability After 2 Months BANK 1’300 ETB Water Committee
Financial Sustainability After 4 Months BANK 2’600 ETB
Financial Sustainability After 12 Months BANK 6’500 ETB 6’000 ETB 500 ETB/month District Water Officer
Financial Sustainability After 24 Months BANK 12’000 ETB
Financial Sustainability After 27 Months 1’350 m 3 water treated Filter media uptake capacity of 3 mg F /g Media Raw water: 2.7 mg/L BANK - 3’500 ETB 12’000 ETB 17’500 ETB Maintenance? Amortization?
Discussion – Running Costs Filter media replacements make up for a significant ratio of the total water costs!
Discussion – Running Costs → Reduction of filter media production costs, regeneration of bone char → Improvement of filter design → Installation of the filter at the water point with the lowest fluoride concentration in a community → Using wind or solar energy for pumping → Using income from selling raw water for subsidizing treated water → No separate operator for the defluoridation community filter → Accepting a higher fluoride guideline in drinking water
Discussion – Infrastructure Costs Defluoridated water is only used for drinking and cooking – fix costs can be distributed only to a small amount of sold water. → Subsidy for infrastructure (by government or NGOs) → Conducting professional promotion to ensure high consumption
Take-Home Message When a fluoride removal filter is constructed it has to be defined how the filter media replacements can be financed! Only long-term fluoride reduction in drinking and cooking water will improve the health impact of fluorosis.
Thank you for the attention!
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