Descripción del proyecto
Nuevos filtros para el agua potable salubre
Colombia está afectada por uno de los niveles más altos de contaminación por mercurio del mundo. La contaminación por mercurio y los agentes patógenos impiden a las comunidades pobres de Colombia acceder al agua potable salubre. El equipo del proyecto FRESHWATER, financiado con fondos europeos, colaborará con las comunidades locales del país para crear un sistema de filtración de agua supervisado por mecanismos de control de calidad fáciles de usar y de leer para producir agua potable salubre y limpia. El equipo de FRESHWATER también establecerá una relación de trabajo bidireccional con un «campeón de la comunidad» que continuará una vez finalice el proyecto. El objetivo general del proyecto será mejorar la calidad del agua en las comunidades con bajos ingresos, así como en las crisis humanitarias, lo que reducirá la carga de las enfermedades hídricas en toda América Latina, Asia y África.
Objetivo
Local communities in Columbia are lacking access to safe drinking water, principally due to mercury pollution and pathogens. Circumstances are such that access to a well-managed piped water supply system are not possible and therefore the communities require local low-cost point-of-use treatment. The objectives of the adsorbing Filters for REmoving pathogenS and Heavy metals in WATER project (FRESHWATER) are:
(i) to cocreate/codesign with local community members in deprived areas in Colombia adsorbing filters, sourcing local plant and other materials as feedstock;
(ii) to integrate these into adsorbing filters creating a robust and reliable water filtration system able to produce safe and clean drinking water, monitored by easy-to-use and easy-to-read quality control mechanisms, and
(iii) to develop a two-way working relationship with a “community champion” to outlast the duration of the project.
Using the engineering skills and knowledge of the Experienced Researcher and the host supervisory team at the University of Bath, UK, the project will lead to improve the quality of the water in low-income communities as well as in humanitarian crises, thus lowering the burden of waterborne diseases. This approach will be adoptable in a wider context in other poor communities in Latin America, Africa and Asia. To cocreate/codesign the adsorbent, frequent field studies in one low-income community in Colombia will be undertaken during the project, in partnership with the Universidad Nacional de Colombia in Bogota.
Ámbito científico
- engineering and technologyenvironmental engineeringwater treatment processesdrinking water treatment processes
- natural scienceschemical sciencesinorganic chemistrytransition metals
- natural sciencesearth and related environmental sciencesenvironmental sciencespollution
- engineering and technologycivil engineeringwater engineeringwater supply systems
Palabras clave
Programa(s)
Régimen de financiación
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)Coordinador
BA2 7AY Bath
Reino Unido