plan 74Arsenic Safe Drinking Water: Gaighata Phase 2

Summary

Self-supporting community- based mitigation program that provides arsenic safe water using modified dugwells along with public education on water related health effects.

Background

Project Well, PW, (2001) has developed a self-supporting community-based mitigation program to provide arsenic safe water to the villagers of the districts of N 24 Parganas of West Bengal, India. There are 22 blocks in this district. PW has been operating in the parts of the blocks namely, Deganga and Habra 1 where the population drinking arsenic contaminated water >50 PPB are 87,334 and 66,685 respectively, and drinking >10 PPB are 133460 and 106374 respectively (In India the drinking water standard for arsenic, according to the Bureau of Indian Standard, is 50 PPB). Experts from various disciplines are advisors of this program. The primary objective of Project Well is to encourage the use of modified conventional dugwell through small community-based groups, comprising 10-20 families, to manage the new source of arsenic safe water and make it sustainable.The program began with the first dugwell in 2001. The outcome of the one-year research program was published in 2003 (Ref: Smith, M. M., T. Hore, et al. "A dugwell program to provide arsenic-safe water in West Bengal, India: preliminary results." J Environ Sci Health Part A Tox Hazard Subst Environ Eng 38(1): 289-99, see pdf file below). In total, 45 dugwells were constructed in different villages. The map of the target area with the location of the dugwells is available at http://projectwellusa.org/maps/maps.htm. The villages under the Kolsur panchayat have been reported to be severely affected, with 75% of their tubewells contaminated.. In the next two years forty dugwells will be introduced in the Gaighata block where the number of people drinking water containing arsenic >50 PPB is estimated to be about 106,000, and those who are drinking >10 PPB number about 155,000.

Location

West Bengal, , India

Attachments

  • village_...
  • PW50a.JP...
  • PW55.JPG...
  • BPR_Budg...
  • BPR_Budg...
Name Status Completion Date Final Cost
Arsenic free dugwell (PW74GDP1) funded by BPR & Glen Ridge RC completed Dec 2008 1,171
Arsenic free dugwell (PW73SU13) funded by BPR & Glen Ridge RC completed Dec 2008 1,171
Arsenic free dugwell (PW75GDP2) funded by BPR & Glen Ridge RC completed Dec 2008 1,171
Arsenic free dugwell (PW76GDP3) funded by BPR & Glen Ridge RC completed Dec 2008 1,171
Arsenic free dugwell (PW77GDP4) funded by BPR & Glen Ridge RC completed Dec 2008 1,171
Arsenic free dugwell (PW78SU14) funded by BPR & Bloomfield RC completed Dec 2008 1,171
Arsenic free dugwell (PW79SU15) funded by BPR & Bloomfield RC completed Dec 2008 0
Arsenic free dugwell (PW80GDP4) funded by BPR & Bloomfield RC complete_unsuccessful Dec 2008 1,171
Arsenic free dugwell (PW81SU16) funded by BPR & Bloomfield RC completed Dec 2008 1,171
Arsenic free dugwell (PW82SU17) funded by Blue Planet Run completed Dec 2008 1,170
Project Well Self-funded - See the # PW83 to PW92 for detail completed Dec 2008 7,030
REFER TO INDIVIDUAL PROJECTS UPLOADED: Arsenic Safe Drinking Water: Gaighata Phase 2 completed Sep 2008 703
Arsenic free dugwell (PW83DUM2) funded by Project Well completed Dec 2008 909
Arsenic free dugwell (PW84DUM3) funded by Project Well completed Dec 2008 909
Arsenic free dugwell (PW85JDN4) funded by Project Well completed Dec 2008 909
Arsenic free dugwell (PW86RMN4) funded by Project Well Pvt. completed Dec 2008 909
Arsenic free dugwell (PW87RMN5) funded by Project Well completed Dec 2008 909
Arsenic free dugwell (PW88JDN1) funded by Rustam Stolkin, Jennifer and Philip Milner, London, UK completed Dec 2008 909
Arsenic free dugwell (PW89RMN7) funded by Project Well completed Dec 2008 909
Arsenic free dugwell (PW90SML3) funded by Group Mosaique, Sagney, Canada complete_unsuccessful Dec 2008 909
Arsenic free dugwell (PW91SU19) funded by David Kalman and Cecil Hudson, Seattle, WA completed Dec 2008 909
Arsenic free dugwell (PW92SU17) funded by Group Mosaique, Sagney, Canada completed Dec 2008 909