When a hurricane or cyclone crashes onto shore with destructive winds and a tidal surge comes with it, its threat to clean water supply is a major concern. In the area hit by a water-related disaster, water treatment plants may not be operating. Storm damage and flooding can destroy water facilities and taint water lines. Pipes broken by washouts or uprooted trees can put water to be contaminated from soil and storm water.
Water in the hurricane-affected area is not safe to drink and consuming contaminated water may cause serious health problems. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), floods can potentially increase the transmission of the following communicable diseases: water-borne diseases, such as typhoid fever, cholera, leptospirosis and hepatitis, and vector-borne diseases, such as malaria, dengue and dengue haemorrhagic fever, yellow fever, and West Nile Fever. Taking extra caution with water consumption is essential after heavy inland flooding.
Dr. Anna Ryu, the CEO of ‘Water and Life Inc’, spent a long time to invent water filtration system which can be used in a emergency, and finally developed a ‘Water & Life’, a water purifier using gravity. It can get rid of high turbidity. Her purifier was fully verified through a field test in collaboration with KOICA (Korea International Cooperation Agency). It was distributed to 40 households including 240 people in a Buzindere village near the Victoria Lake in Uganda. After 2 months with her purifier, more than 95% cases of water-borne diseases, such as, stomachache, diarrhea, vomiting, bilharzia, typhoid, cholera, dysentery, went away. Children no longer felt sick as frequently as before.
UN-Water, the United Nations’ inter-agency coordination mechanism for all water-related issues, defined ‘water security’ as: “The capacity of a population to safeguard sustainable access to adequate quantities and acceptable quality of water for sustaining livelihoods, human wellbeing, and socio-economic development, for ensuring protection against water-borne pollution and water-related disasters, and for preserving ecosystems in a climate of peace and political stability” (UN-Water, 2013). Every continents face water security increasingly due to the effects of climate change, urbanization, as well as natural disasters. As we are confronted with the on-going water-related challenges, addressing water security need more practical approach to deal with the interconnected challenges and enhance sustainability, development and human welfare.
With her purifier, Dr. Ryu set her sights on providing stable access for clean water to people in developing countries, starting from Africa. She also engages in cooperation for alleviation of water problems in some Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia countries. She demonstrated her commitment to help to enhance water security and to let people know the true value of clean water.
Kayla Hong
Asia Journal
(Los Angeles Times Advertising Supplement)
▲ Water & Life, Inc.
▲ CEO : Anna Ryu
▲ Brand : Water & Life
▲+82-70-4188-1530
