UV Purification
Waterborne illnesses associated with contaminated water sources, inadequate sanitation, and poor hygiene are leading causes of morbidity and mortality in the developing world, resulting in more than 1.7 million deaths annually. The burden of disease falls disproportionately on children, contributing significantly to high mortality rates for children under five years old, exacerbating malnutrition and stunting growth.
The most important first step in providing access to clean, safe water to families and communities is to maintain proper hygiene and sanitation facilities. There are a number of water purification methods in use such as chlorination, ceramic filtration, boiling or heating to 70 degrees C and solar disinfection. Chlorine is inexpensive but adds an undesirable taste to the water and is not effective against all disease causing microorganisms. Boiling is effective at eliminating almost all microorganisms but is energy intensive and not sustainable contributing to deforestation if wood fuel is used. Collecting firewood may also place users in danger. Solar disinfection is very inexpensive but is dependent on adequate sunlight and has a long wait time.
BGET collaborates with the Global Youth Service Team (GYST) to install UV water purifiers designed from the Renewable and Appropriate Energy Laboratory (RAEL) at University of California at Berkeley. The UV water purifiers were installed in migrant schools and used with solar powered systems.
