A blog to see how lives change for people in need of water

Wateroam Diary - Water Project in Floating Village

28/8/2019

Chhnok Tru floating village in Cambodia surrounded by contaminated river water

The floating houses of Chhnok Tru village

In 2018, Wateroam had the opportunity to head down to Chhnok Tru floating village in Cambodia. The village has a total of over 1,700 households and is divided into 3 ethnic groups – Khmer, Cham and Vietnamese.

Primarily, the locals of Chhnok Tru Village obtain their water supply from the Tonle Sap lake, which their village floats upon. However, the water has been polluted from municipal waste and public defecation.

Rubbish and pollutants found on Tonle Sap lake, contaminating the Chhnok Tru village water source

Heaps of rubbish on water
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/apr/25/mountains-and-mountains-of-plastic-life-on-cambodias-polluted-coast

Due to lack of education and waste infrastructure, locals dump their rubbish into their water source without much thought. Human waste is also directly deposited into the lake without any treatment.

The quality of the lake is worsened during dry seasons. Without a choice, the locals still have to rely on the contaminated lake water for laundry, dishes, bathing and even cooking.

Families utilising water from a contaminated river for cooking and washing

Cooking utensils being left by a contaminated river, using the unclean and unsafe water to cook and wash the dishes

Families using the river water for cooking and washing

There are several companies there that treat the lake water to produce and sell bottled potable water. However, the main issue we have identified is that not all locals can afford the potable water. As such, they have no choice but to resort to using the lake water for consumption.

This makes them prone to waterborne diseases and other health issues such as diarrhea, cholera, typhoid, dysentery, with many families tackling these issues throughout the year.

A group photo, picturing the members from Wateroam, OceaNUS, Souperstar and Paññāsāstra University of Cambodia in Cambodia

Wateroam working together with OceaNUS, Souperstar and PUC!

To tackle these challenges, Wateroam partnered with NUS Project OceaNUS and students from the Paññāsāstra University of Cambodia (PUC) and Souperstar to provide the villagers with access to clean drinking water.

A team huddle, comprising of members from Wateroam, OceaNUS, Souperstar and Paññāsāstra University of Cambodia, in Cambodia

Unite!

Through their combined efforts, NUS Project OceaNUS’18 was able to raise funds for 4 ROAMfilter™ Plus systems while SOUPERSTAR sponsored 2 more systems through their SOUPEROAMERS Programme, providing more than 600 people in the village with safe drinking water!

Young children in Cambodia learning about good hygiene in their classroom

Picking up good hygiene habits starts from me

Apart from providing safe drinking water, the focus on hygiene education is also a big part of Project OceaNUS. With the help of the student volunteers from PUC, Project OceaNUS’18 introduced the Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Education (WASH) programme in 3 different schools to educate students on environmental awareness, the importance of clean water and proper sanitation.

A large group of young children in Cambodia that took part in the WASH programme

Wateroam and OceaNUS representatives presenting a certificate to a school principal in Cambodia

Wei Ling (Project Director for OceaNUS’18), School Principal and Chong Tee (Wateroam)

The 3 ROAMfilter™ Plus systems were allocated in different schools so that the students can get clean drinking water easily and reduce the cases of waterborne diseases. With clean water and better health, students are able to focus better in school

A man presented with a portable water filter that is effective for rural development, the ROAMfilter Plus

A group of children having access to clean drinking water by using Wateroam's ROAMfilter Plus

Children utilizing the ROAMfilter Plus!

A young girl obtaining safe drinking water using Wateroam's portable water filter called the ROAMfilter Plus

Fresh drinking water straight from the tap

The 2 ROAMfilter™ Plus systems were deployed in the floating village to provide clean drinking water to the community. Life, living and livelihood of every individual in the village will be improved through clean water access.

Setting up the ROAMfilter Plus on a floating house in the Chhnok Tru floating village

Healthcare services in rural health centres are often limited by their lack of clean water. Without clean water, the recovery process of patients is hindered by poor sanitation and treatment options. Therefore, 1 ROAMfilter™ Plus was allocated at the healthcare center. By supplying clean water to rural health centres, healthcare workers now are able to provide safe, quality treatment and ensure the smooth recovery of their patients.

Demonstrations, education workshops, and maintenance training were carried out with the local community to ensure the long-term sustainability of the project. Thus, with proper operation and maintenance of ROAMfilter™ Plus, they can produce clean drinking water to the community for more than 2 years.

A sketch by a villager in the Chhnok Tru village, on how to operate the ROAMfilter Plus by gravity-fed

A sketch by a local villager

The sketch shows the future plan of using the water collected in the water storage tank and connect it to ROAMfilter™ Plus to filter the contaminated water to potable water for drinking.

Members from Wateroam, OceaNUS, Souperstar and Paññāsāstra University of Cambodia smiling for a picture in Cambodia

Safe drinking water for all!

Through the collaboration between Wateroam, Project OceaNUS, PUC and Souperstar, we have successfully impacted approximately 600 people across the village.

While we were able to provide these communities with safe drinking water, there are still many difficulties that we are working to overcome. For one, maintaining long term contact with the villagers can be challenging as some of these communities are nomadic in nature.

This learning journey has taught us the importance of partnership and collaboration. It was truly a unique and humbling experience for us as it allow us to reflect on why our crusade to end prolonged thirst started.

Do you have a community that is currently facing a similar problem? Contact us to get your very own ROAMfilter™ Plus for your water project today!

Did you know, 525,000 children under 5 die from diarrhoeal diseases every year? Millions more fall ill due to water-borne diseases caused by the lack of access to clean drinking water.

A young girl smiling while enjoying clean drinking water from Wateroam's portable water filter

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Wateroam works with Sponsors and partners on the ground to provide clean drinking water access. Through complementing one another's strengths, we are able to maximise our resources and increase social impact.

Sponsors provide resource support to empower while local partners help deploy clean drinking water, actively working with communities to ensure water sustainability for the long term.

By working together, we can reach out rapidly to the 633 million people globally without safe water access. Visit our Get Involved section to learn more about the role you can play!

Let's build a world without prolonged thirst together!