Water - Haiti Observer Blog

About Forty percent of the people in Haiti lack access to clean water and only one in five have access to a sanitary toilet. Even in the capital city, millions of people have no reliable water supply. One of the most popular and affordable solutions for lack of access to hygienic water is sachés dlo, 9oz water bags that are sold in every corner of the country. However, when they are discarded after consumption, become a big problem.

They do not decompose and by the time they get into any drain, that drain is plugged and it causes flooding. Plastic bags are difficult and costly to recycle and most end up on landfill sites where they take around 300 years to photo degrade. Plastic bags are now amongst the top 12 items of debris most often found along coastlines that cause damage to the sea life. To reduce the sachet water consumption, the government should provide clean drinking water to the citizens, and they must take necessary steps to recycle the plastic wastes.

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Haiti has an underfunded and inadequate water and sanitation system. As a result cholera cases continue to multiply. Here is some information on the state of Haiti's water system.

Fewer than 50% of Haitians in rural areas can obtain water. Though there exists piped water systems, a majority of them don't function due to underfunding. The solution has been delivered by the World Bank South Region by hiring professional operators to run the systems. Also a U.S. $50 million dollar water initiative will help to prevent cholera by increasing local agencies' capacity to provide more access to water and sanitation.

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Haiti's School Children need Clean Drinking Water and Toilets. Human Rights Watch (HRW) has urged the World Bank, international donors, and the government of Haiti (GOH) to begin providing school children with clean toilets and safe drinking water. They are gathering at a donors' conference in Washington D.C., to increase funding commitments toward clean drinking water and an improved sanitation and health system on the island.

HRW has discovered almost 60% of Haitian schools lack toilets, with over 75% having no access to water. Even recently completed schools, built with funds contributed by international donors, HRW found did not meet government guidelines, lacking both sufficient water and sanitation facilities. Consequently, students are missing classroom time, at home ill with diarrhea. HRW is asking the World Bank to lead on this issue by supporting basic rights of school children to clean drinking water, and proper and adequate sanitation facilities at their schools. HRW's Amanda Klasing says "The majority of children in Haiti attend schools in such poor condition . . . they risk contracting disease . . ."

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Lemon, the ellipsoidal, often yellow fruit that is almost a staple in Haitian homes is used in everything from the preparation of cool, refreshing glasses of lemonade, to the preparation of food. A great ingredient, the citrus fruit gives flavor in its juice and its rind (zest). A new way of using lemons, that is quickly catching-on, pushes its importance even further.

According to American nutritionist Ann Louise Gittleman, lemons can also be the answer to the question of how one can obtain optimal hydration, improve digestion, boost immunity and, the holy grail of all health goals, lose weight.

Just by swapping out your tea or coffee in the morning for a hot cup of lemon water, people can see the benefits of this super fruit through many aspects of health. To make the drink, to be had first thing in the morning for best results, one should combine the juice of half of one lemon, or 1 tablespoon of 100% organic lemon juice for those who do not have fresh lemons, with a cup of hot water. Drinking this concoction, which can be spruced up to taste with anything from ground cinnamon or ginger--a pinch of each, will give further drive to one's metabolism.

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The island of Haiti has been at the mercy of U.S. interests since the mid-1800s. In a greedy move, it appropriated the island of La Navase, just off the coast of Hispaniola. This action violated Haiti's 1801 Constitution that declares La Navase as one of its possessions.

The takeover of La Navase occurred in 1857 after U.S. Congress enacted Guano Islands Act in 1856. Because La Navase contains large deposits of guano over most of its terrain, any U.S. citizen could take possession of it. Guano, at that time, was a highly-prized fertilizer made from bird droppings.

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DloHaiti, a start-up based in Port-au-Prince has managed to accumulate a fund of $3.37 million from its round of Series A Funding. dloHaiti hopes that it will be able to use this money to quickly roll out its facilities of decentralized water production throughout the Republic of Haiti.

Jim Chu, CEO of dloHaiti told Global Water Intelligence (or GWI) after IFC InfraVentures initial seed investment that apart from himself, investments were made by Miyamoto International, Leopard Capital, FMO and IFC InfraVentures and that dloHaiti has a plan of going for scale-up financing of Series B sometime later.

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Since Haiti's petrifying earthquake of 2010, one of the needs Haitians have is for clean drinking water. Many remote rural areas in Haiti do not have direct access to a water source. They must trek many miles over rough terrain to a waterfall or river and haul back whatever they can carry. Even children must perform this task for their family's water needs.

International celebrity and high-fashion designer Giorgio Armani has come forward with the Acqua for Life Campaign (AFLC). He has developed two scents, Acqua di Gio and Acqua di Gioia, whose sales proceeds will go to AFLC. Every flacon sold will mean 100 liters of fresh drinking water for Haitians annually. Armani's mission does not stop there. He is also gifting $500,000 dollars to the Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Agency (WASH), operated by the Haiti Relief Organization (HRO).

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The summer months are synonymous with fun, however, neglecting good sense when dealing with the inherent dangers posed by the hottest months of the year can lead to situations much less enjoyable than anticipated. Child safety is solely the responsibility of parents as soon as school lets out. For those who need a primer on what that requires, here are some tips on summer safety.

Sunscreen, Heatstroke and Hydration

Of course you know this! An SPF of 15 or higher will protect them from harmful sun rays and prevent painful sunburns. Pack enough for hourly reapplications as they tend to fade with sweat.

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Saut-d'Eau falls in the Central Plateau of Haiti is at peril of running dry. Its mouth, Kaara, is not producing enough water to keep the waterfall of Saut-d'Eau at full volume, having declined in its output over the last six months.

Simon Desras, President of the Senate, worries if the falls should stop flowing, the economy of the Central Plateau will suffer. The stoppage would damage, not only the economy of the region, but affect a tradition that has taken place at the falls since 1847. In that year, an apparition of the Virgin Mary manifested at the twin falls, beginning an annual pilgrimage to Saut-d'Eau, to bathe beneath the onrushing streams that plunge down the gorge. Upwards of 20,000 bathers visit each year for this sacred rite.

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In the aftermath of the Haiti earthquake one of the biggest problems was a shortage of clean, drinkable water.

The world has been sending drinking water to Haiti and via plastic containers in large proportion.

Do we really need drinking water in Haiti to be shipped in plastic cans, causing more problem with trash and others.

Haiti needs better drinking water; however it should not be short term. There are several ways we can improve the distributions of drinking water in Haiti, and one of the goals of Haiti reconstruction needs to be focused on clean, drinking water for all Haitians

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