As Tyler Falk reports basing his analysis on NPR's Richard Knox's article entitled: Port-au-Prince: A City of Million, With No Sewer Systems, Haitian cities have no sewer systems which leads to a major public health crisis: Cholera. This infectious disease hits the country causing half a million cases and over 7,000 deaths.
However, Richard Knox has recently noticed two interesting D.M.W.L initiatives:
Suggested Article: Richard Knox | Port-au-Prince: A City of Millions, With No Sewer System, || NPR's Health Blog, April 13, 2012
The first comes from a school in Port-au-Prince that is using an actual toilet. It's not connected to pipes but it does do something pretty amazing. It's a biodigester. The waste from the toilet is recycled and is turned into methane gas. The school will use the gas for cooking. On a large scale it could be a cheaper, quicker solution.The second case is the construction of Haiti's first sewage treatment plant, outside the city.
[T]his plant and another one 12 miles away that's about to open will handle the city's entire output. The sludge will be used for agricultural compost, and the detoxified effluent will irrigate a grove of trees to be planted around the treatment ponds. (…). Soon there will be treatment plants like this one in seven other Haitian cities. (…) The money comes from a post-earthquake donation by the Spanish government.Tyler Falk concludes with this:
Port-au-Prince might be the epitome of the good and bad that comes with cities. On the one hand, lots of people in a small space can produce major health concerns. But at the same time, it's in cities where innovation can happen at a much larger and faster scale, helping more people, if the resources are available.I can't wait for having more news, and better: feedback on these initiatives on Haiti's cities and vicinities.
Source: Smart Planet and NPR's Health Blog.
No comments:
Post a Comment