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Fog Water Collection in Nepal NEWAH's Experience
Nepal is a country of great geologic, climatic and ethnic diversity, and as such, water agencies face many challenges in developing projects that address the varied water resource needs of different communities. While rich in water resources, the distribution of fresh water in rural villages is still a major problem. The reason for this is due largely to prevailing environmental, management, technical and rights-related issues.
In many parts of Nepal, communities have settled high on hilltops and ridgelines. People have settled in these locations for a variety of reasons, be it to maximize arable land on the hillsides or to strategically place themselves along traditional trade routes. In the hills of Nepal, water sources such as streams and springs are generally located at lower elevations. This is a problem because often the only technology available to rural Nepalis is gravity-flow water systems. As a result, villagers must carry water up from sources at lower elevations. This work, which sometimes consumes 4-6 hours per day, is generally carried out by women and children. What's more, the quality of water from these sources is highly variable. Nearly 38,000 diarrhea related deaths occur each year in Nepal, and overall it is estimated that 72% of all disease is related to inadequate water and sanitation services.
In response to this Nepal Water for Health (NEWAH) has been researching and developing practical fog water collection systems for rural communities since late 1998. Working with a network of local NGOs, NEWAH identifies potential communities through field studies that evaluate the potential for fog collection and the social demand for water. In Nepal, these conditions are typically found on hills and ridgelines between 2000 and 3500 meters.
The Large Fog Collectors (LFC) are constructed using 4 x 8 meter sheets of polypropylene mesh, which when suspended on a ridgeline resembles a large volleyball net. Warm air from the Bay of Bengal moves inland during the monsoon, where it intercepts the varied topology of the Himalayan foothills. As the air moves up into valleys at higher altitudes, it mixes with cooler air and condenses, forming fog. As fog passes through the fog collectors, water droplets cling to the weave of the mesh, and filter down into a discharge system that stores the water in 20,000 liter ferro-cement tanks. Water quality testing found that all parameters meet WHO guidelines.
To date NEWAH has implemented fog water collection systems in three communities in Eastern Nepal. The first implementation began in 2000, in the hill village of Dhoje Danda in Danda Bazar of Dhankuta distirct. Here six large fog collectors produce an average of 1700 liters of water per day for the villages 75 inhabitants. The system is operated and maintained by the community, who has used maintenance fund surpluses to initiate additional community development projects, such as the construction of household toilets and dish drying racks for improved sanitation practices.
In 2002 the second project was initiated in the small village of Megma, located high on the border with Darjeeling, India. Working with the local primary school that hosts children from surrounding villages, NEWAH designed and built a fog water collection system that produces an average of 1200 liters of fresh water every day. Prior to its installation, students had to use open fields to defecate, and there was little water for hand washing. In conjunction with the water system, the school has built two new toilets and benefited from health education seminars. Teachers have noticed a marked increase in the hygiene practices of students.
The most recent system was completed in March 2004 at Pathivara Temple in Taplejung district, in the remote Northeastern corner of Nepal. Pathivara is a sacred Hindu temple on a hill top at 3800 meters over looking the Kachenjunga massif. During the summer months between 800 and 1000 pilgrims make the two day journey to the site. Pilgrims previously traveled five hours roundtrip to collect water from a spring located down hill. During the summer months the two NEWAH fog collectors produce over 1000 liters of water per day for devotees, reducing the burden of collecting water to a five minute trip.
The NEWAH fog water collection systems have had profound social ramifications within these three distinct communities. In all cases fog water collection has reduced the burden of carrying water from distant, unreliable sources. Through time-savings women now have more time to engage in other income generating activities, and children have more time to study and play. The fog collectors are low maintenance and passive, requiring no energy to operate. The systems are expandable to adapt to changing demands, compatible with other technologies such as rainwater collection, and surplus water can be used for ground water re-charge or for small scale irrigation. The effect on the environment is negligible, as fog collectors remove less than 1% of water content from the moving cloud base.
Nepal Water for Health has recently outlined an action plan for the continuing implementation of fog water collection schemes in rural hill communities in Nepal. This will involve working with regional partners to systematically conduct feasibility studies in potential communities, and a robust fundraising campaign to implement full scale fog collection systems were the conditions are conducive.
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