Water

Water Side / The mouth of a fresh water river in Monrovia.

I have mentioned several times that water is a crisis issue here in Liberia. Still recovering from 15 years of Civil War which destroyed most of the Liberian infrastructure that had been built over 150 years, a civil water system is still one of the most urgent needs for the entire country let alone the densely populated city of Monrovia. Clean, fresh, drinkable water is rare. There is a limited water system here in Liberia – but it is still being put to the test and most of the time I have learned “city water” is off line for days at a time – forcing most homes that rely on the civil system to have back up cisterns.

Coconut Plantation water delivery truck.

Even here at the revered Coconut Plantation which seemingly has the capacity for well water or at least connection to civil water, water is brought in daily by truck delivery.  The 13 units of Coconut Plantation rely on water from a truck that delivers every day, providing water for the compound well/cistern. Each home has a water pump that then pumps the water for bathing, cleaning, plants, and washing. Unfortunately, the water predicament is so tenuous in Liberia that even this “safe” water is not reliable for drinking.  This is confirmed because neither Mamie nor Andrew will drink from the tap. So we have a “super duper mega crazy” water filter to which we use to drink and clean our fruits and vegetables. We drink mostly bottled water that is bought at the supermarket bottled, in Lebanon (the Lebanese own most of the import food trade here in Monrovia). We even keep bottled water by the sink to use to brush our teeth and wash our faces.

This, for me, has been one of the most disturbing facts/issues to grasp. How after three years we have not solved this problem as a Nation and as a world. Surely there are many other nations and regions suffering from water issues, but Liberia has more to water to collect and disperse than most of those nations. Liberia is working on so many facets of rebuilding and there are so many prohibitive laws, politics, and protocols that the people are suffering from clean water. So much is at stake, not just hydration and life, but hygiene, sanitation, and health.

Child selling water in bags fro 5-10 Liberty or about 16 cents US.

Because I am still acclimating to the heat and climate – I often carry a large bottle of water with me wherever I go – I have obviously and immediately noticed that I am the only person who has such a habit – and this has caused locals to call me “Water Man.” At first, I was wary of being noticed, insecure about being identified so readily, but I tried a smaller bottle, but still, “Water Man.” Well, so be it! I am water man – no one has asked me for my water , no one has even come close to me, so I have become comfortable carrying my water – a blatant luxury, a blatant example that I “have,” and those around me “have not.”

Water Filter for House #12

When I brought the water filter with me from Chicago, Vamsi immediately installed and tested the device. Next we taught Mamie how to use the filter and “allowed” her to use it and made sure she had enough “water bottles to refill.” Additionally, we noticed Andrew goes all day without noticeably drinking water – I offered him a bottle one day and he looked SURPRISED, and questioned its drinkability. Certainly, this was defeating and depressing to me. That water was such a treasure that he was in disbelief that I would offer him drinkable water – I tried to explain that when his bottle was empty he should leave it on the back porch or let Mamie or I know and we would refill it – I still don’t think he understands as I often ask and he runs away to get his empty bottle.

The state of water her in Liberia is disturbing on so many level it is hard to comprehend/explain without feeling discouraged and listless. I have researched online through the various NGO’s working in Liberia the progress of water. I have come to learn that most water tat arrives naturally to Monrovia is polluted in one form or another – either from upstream industry or downstream waste. Most of the locals use the river for a bathroom, and if not directly, sewage eventually ends up in the rivers. Additionally any wells that  exist are also tainted by sewage. Wells and cisterns that do have usable water are not maintained properly and NGO’s have found that most usable wells are above 83 degrees Fahrenheit which means water is now a place for growing bacteria and other water-born illnesses.

So what does the common Liberian do for drinkable water and hygiene? Well, hygiene is a major stumbling block; most folks conceptually do not understand hygiene or sanitation. Why? Certainly before the war there was water, etc. True, but most of the urban city residents fled the country or were killed. Most of the current Morovian population (1.1 million) is derived from ex-combatants who arrived from the bush to battle in the civil war, or those form the bush who came to find work, like Mamie for instance who moved here with her husband (now deceased) from Grand Bassa county to find work. Out in the bush, drinking water was separated from sewage and of course the population was smaller less likely to foster disease. There are definitive sources of “drinkable” water that are usually delivered to community/neighborhood cisterns. But again this water is tenuous to say the least. The water arrives at these locations at what look like old oil tankers, and surely the sanitation of this system is not monitored or currently regulated.

Water is dragged, rolled, carried in open buckets on heads, in pails and small plastic “drinkable bags” that look like ziplock bags all over the city. Urban dwellers also boil their water and just plain hope for the best – drinking less than the recommended 8 glasses a day eh?

What’s troubling is all the energy that goes into provided drinkable water to a community of 1.1 million folks when Liberia is listed as the 3^rd nation in the world to have the most annual rainfall, and Monrovia is listed as the 1^st city in the world to have the most annual rainfall! Water is available to this region!!!!

So I watch trucks with thick black smoke busting from their pipes rumble through streets delivering water daily to the catholic school at the end of the street, I see people spending hours of their day carting water all over town, I think about all the plastic bottles being shipped around the world and imported to Liberia so that expats can drink safely. And I worry about all the coal that is burned to boil water throughout the city creating even more pollution. Just a mess of a predicament.

Liberia does have several NGO’s and projects taking place around the country. But as I have come to learn, the politics and turf waters of egos, both personally, and nationally or prohibiting any urgent action. There is one program you can find here that offers a lot of detail regarding their progress it is called WaSH : Water Sanitation Hygiene. Liberia WaSH Program

What is disconcerting – sorry for the diatribe of disconcertion today – is that a lot of NGO’s are a pseudo business. A lot of for profits – have a non profit arm/subsidiary in order to secure USAID (or other governments/UN/Foundation) monies (in the 100’s of millions: yes YOUR tax dollars) to work on a variety of projects. So when you read websites like this ___ and read about the success stories and see the wonderful photos, one must read as a cynic. These success stories (veiled/mild attempts at self reporting and public relations) are similar to our own work reports created at the office, highlighting all the good work, and all successes – creating a scenario that allows you to move forward and in the case of an NGO nesting in a corporation – secure more contracts.  So yes, the kind reader can feel good about all the success, because the kind reader will most likely never get to Liberia – and certainly the kind reader will never see a story on television on such an industry as NGO’s working abroad.

Other resources:

Safe Drinking Water

Article on contaminated water in Liberia

http://www.charitywater.org/blog/liberia-equip/