On December 26, 2004, the second largest earthquake ever recorded caused a series of
tsunamis in the Indian Ocean. The effects of the "Boxing Day Tsunami" were devastating to the poor,
low-lying island nation of Maldives. In response to the devastation, USAID provided $1.9 million in
new programming to benefit two of the largest islands, Hinnavaru and Naifaru. The objectives of the
program included improvements in health care services (reducing acute and chronic illness)
and building local capacity. One critical aspect of implementing the health care services program was
provision of a safe and reliable potable water supply utilizing desalination. The technical aspects of
the project involved the design, installation, and commissioning of two donated 8,000 GPD seawater
desalination units on the islands of Hinnavaru and Naifaru. As part of ensuring the technical
sustainability of the program, the humanitarian aspects of the project included team building and
coordination, community assessment and mobilization, community health education, and capacity
building of local governmental organization, in addition to the training of local operators and
provision of ongoing technical support. This paper focuses on both the technical aspects of the
project and the project sustainability of implementing desalination in the developing world. The
technical aspects of this project included several elements: an open seawater intake system; pretreatment
utilizing multimedia filters; seawater reverse osmosis units; stabilization and disinfection processes; brine
management; a distribution network; and, an emergency generator. One key aspect of project sustainability
was the inclusion of stakeholders on both the governmental and local level. The authors coordinated
the interests of USAID, three Maldivian government organizations, island chiefs, and local water
committees. Includes tables, figures.
| Edition : | Vol. - No. |
| File Size : | 1
file
, 950 KB |
| Note : | This product is unavailable in Ukraine, Russia, Belarus |
| Number of Pages : | 12 |
| Published : | 11/01/2009 |
