Day 12 - Friday February 29

Today construction began in earnest. I posted some photos here on the blog. We met out at the site and the villagers proceeded to dig a new bore well - they were so excited to begin, that they were again waiting for us by the road. It is a fascinating process and extremely work intensive. After the bore well was dug, the villagers then proceeded to excavate for the footings. The masons (these are the contractors worker's) then began to fill the excavations with concrete and rebar. All of the concrete mixing took place by hand with small shovels- it was extremely tough work, compounded by the fact that these guys are working in 90+ degree heat with high humidity. The villagers worked to help the contractor and brought jars of water from an existing well (that is approximately 30 feet away) to the masons for the mixing process.

After the footings were laid, the form work was placed around the rebar frames for the columns. The first four feet of the columns were poured today. Things are going very fast at the moment and we are absolutely thrilled to finally be in full swing with construction!

Day 11 - Thursday, February 28

Today we received formal approval from the collector. This means that we have the necessary government approvals, which is fantastic! So we went out to the site and checked out the new location more closely. The villagers were waiting when we got there and they were so excited to begin! We called the Rotary donor, as he needed to give us permission before we could actually start doing any work. He agreed that we could progress at this new site and gave us permission to call the contractor. So we laid out the footings and discussed (ok, I use the term discuss here very loosely - we still don't have a translator, so we just basically made a bunch of gestures and said ok and somehow eventually we were all on the same page regarding the location of the new bore well). The villagers began digging a new bore well immediately when we agreed on the new location and they were almost finished by the time we laid out the footings for the columns (I will post some photos tomorrow because I have limited time on the internet today). We laid out the footings with string and a square (makes you miss some of the equipment we have back home), but it worked out fine.

But in essence, we are finally starting! It is so exciting after all of these setbacks! The villagers were so sweet - again the women brought us flowers for our hair and then later in the day they bought us pop (though where they got the pop from I have no idea). We felt so bad about them buying us pop - these people shouldn't be spending their money on us! But our communication is so limited that we had not way of telling them that without most likely being insulting. Every interaction with our villagers just reinforces that everything that we have had to deal with absolutely worth it to help these people.

In the evening, we were invited to attend a wedding. And wow, what a production! There were 15,000-20,000 people in attendance and the amount of camera crews, lights, flowers, etc - it was just mindboggling! The sound system alone made me feel like I was at a concert. It was a traditional Andhra wedding, and really an amazing experience for Deepa and I to see.

Tomorrow we will go to the village early to meet with the contractor. Things should start moving fast now!

Day 10 - Wednesday, February 27

Today we received tentative approval to start our work in Jalamma Palem. The project will be in a new location (requiring a new pad and handpump), and we are planning on going to the village tomorrow to ensure that there are no problems with this new location.

Day 9 - Tuesday February 26

Today was a bad day. We went to our village to start marking the locations for the footings and we were told that apparently where our original well is located is on private property - apparently the owner gave the villagers an easement to place only a well on this property. Clearly this is something our team should have been told by the previous site assessment team. This is a big issue, and nothing should have been done on this land without consent of all parties. So basically we cannot construct our project in this area. The villagers had located what they considered to be a viable alternative location, however, we wondered if we would have the same issue with landrights in this location. Apparently this land where they would like to construct the project is on the Kapu's land, however, we were told by our Rotary contact that we cannot do anything until he gives the go ahead. It was really a very sad situation, because we don't have a proper translator and we had to tell the villagers somehow that we couldn't start today. They were so excited to start the project, they offered to start digging a new well right away and we had to tell them that they had to wait. The look of disappointment on their faces was heartbreaking. Yeah, it was not a good day. We also had to call the contractor that we had managed to line up through the help of ASSIST and tell them to stop work. They had already purchased the equipment and started cutting the rebar, but our Rotary donor told us to tell them to stop until he gives us his ok. This is a tough situation because he did not give us any funds for this project (he is holding the money) and everything was able to be purchased on credit because these people were trying to help us get this project done.

So instead of sitting idle while we waited for the determination of whether we could build in this new location, we set out to find vendors for the remaining equipment that we needed. Our Rotary donor in Hyderabad wanted us to get several quotes for everything we purchased, which is extremely difficult because 1) we don't speak telugu and spend about an hour miming things to get people to understand and 2) this is a very small place and it is VERY limited as to what you can buy here. If you can find things at all, you need to count yourself lucky. For instance, there is only one pipe shop. We were having difficulties finding a PVC liner for our wetland (we spent all of Monday evening going from shop to shop), but as we were driving back from the village we saw a tarp and we had our driver stop. We got out of the car and pointed at the tarp and we finally managed to make him understand that we wanted the name for this type of material. We then managed to communicate that we would like to buy this type of material (the driver speaks a little english), and he took us to several stores. Success! We found a PVC type material that would work! It is a little thin, so we decided to purchase two to make up for this issue. And then directly across the street we found material that would be useful for a screen and then other rebar type materials that would be useful if we had to extend the pad. So amazingly enough, this was our most successful day of material procurement (we had been searching everyday for materials after we returned from the village). We took the name for all of these shops, because our Rotary donor will not allow us to purchase anything until we have his approval. We were not given an advance, so we have to wait to purchase all of our equipment until gives the ok and releases the funds.

All in all, a very tough day. I'm hoping tomorrow is better.

Day 8 - Monday, February 25

Today we went to Jalamma Palem. ASSIST escorted us, because there were a number of issues to revolve that were impossible to deal with without the presence of a proper translator (Mr. Murthy speaks wonderful English and was gracious enough to take the time out of his busy day to come with us). We learned that the rainwater catchment portion of the project was not going to be as helpful to the villagers as we originally thought because of the minimal amounts of rainfall that they receive. So to work around this issue, we brainstormed with the villagers and determined that the ability to fill the tank either manually or via an automated method would make this structure even more useful to them. We then talked to the women about how they would like their 'wash stations'/sinks set up. The women have to currently walk quite a ways to do their washing. They told us that they do not need sinks, and that the women all wash together and that it would be better for them to have at least four washing areas together on the ground. We figured out what dimensions were appropriate and plan to incorporate this into our design. Those were the only major issues and the villagers were actually fine with the present location as well. They were so excited about our plan! It gave us such an amazing feeling to see the looks on their faces and realize that we were actually going to be building something that they were excited about that was going to make their lives better.

The villagers then continued to discuss some other issues that are affecting them. The government had promised them 22 houses, but they are having difficulties getting them to construct there houses. ASSIST is a very big organization in this area, so they agreed to talk to the government on behalf of the villagers to get this process moving. ASSIST was planning to have a small event in this area to make this happen - they agreed with our assessment that the village of Jalamma Palem are filled with very nice people that have somehow fallen through the cracks. They have received very little tsunami aid, while villages next door have received numerous funds. We feel really excited that we were able to put our village in contact with ASSIST, which is a properly run organization that does much for the people in this area.

Day 7 - Sunday, February 24

This morning we worked on changing aspects of our design. We revisited our sizing for our wetland after seeing the village and after we see the new location tomorrow, we will determine if we need to downsize the structure. We also set up our water quality laboratory in our room, so we are all set to do some Ecoli as well as nitrate testing. We lost quite a few reagents in transit, but we have enough to run an MPN test on each well, and an MPN test on the SODIS treated water. Each test can take up to 48-72 hours, so it will be good to get started now.

We then attended a function with ASSIST - they were having a kickoff function for one of their new projects in the village of Kudipudi. Here they are working in conjunction with Philip Morris to construct a water distrubution system throughout the town and finish the construction of a new primary school (the construction was started with government money, but the government funds ran out before the project was completed so the school is just sitting there half finished). It was a very nice function and we were received very well - there was a chance they thought we were the representatives from Philip Morris. Alot gets lost in translation here :).



Thanks to Mike and Liz in LA for sorting out our construction questions so quickly. We had questions regarding the rebar sizing and then requested an additional pad design for the new bore well. Given our limited time here, it is great that you guys responded so quickly - so thanks again!

Day 6 - Saturday February 23

Today we headed out to Jalamma Palem (our village) with a member of ASSIST who was to serve as our translator in addition to the contractor that we met yesterday. We stopped at the contractors house to have a traditional South Indian breakfast (like I said before, the hospitality is unbelievable - everyone we have met has been gracious and very hospitable). There we met with a local Civil Engineer and explained our design to him - he speaks more English than the contractor - and he then explained our design in detail to the contractor. I don't know if I mentioned this before, but the contractor is also a member of Rotary, so he will be constructing our project (with help from the villagers) for only labor and material costs - i.e., no profit. We then continued on to the village.

ASSIST had sent two of their other staff members to the village in the morning to inform the villagers that we were coming. When we arrived we were presented with flowers for our hair, and then seated in a space as the guests of honor in front of the village. At this point, we learned more about the village in general. There are thirty families in the village. The men are all fishermen, and the women either work in the fields or go to the market to sell fish. The villagers told us that since the tsunami, the fishing has completely changed. There are many days now where they cannot catch any fish at all, and this is in sharp contrast to the pre-tsunami period, when the fish were abundant. This is problematic for their livelihood, because this village is sustained primarily on fishing.

The villagers seemed to like our plan, but they needed to ask their Kapo, who was out of town. The Kapo is, from what I could tell, basically the village leader. He makes the final decisions about everything that is to happen in the village. The villagers said they would talk to him and let us know either tonight or tomorrow his decision. Basically this is a formality, as they know about the work and are excited to have us come and construct our water station. The villagers were very warm and generous with us - and meeting them solidified why we are doing all of this.
The villagers mentioned that they would like to see our water station moved to a different location. Currently, we are placing the water station essentially on top of an existing bore well. However, the villagers are planning to erect several new houses, and they were hoping that we could install a new bore well at this location and put the water station at that site. We had a tough time with translation at this point, so the head of ASSIST offered to come with us to Jalamma Palem on Monday to talk to the villagers and see where exactly they would like the water station. We want to ensure that above all else that whatever we construct will be usable and beneficial to the villagers.

After we returned to Ongole from the village, we set out to create a cost estimate for the project. It is very difficult, as we don't have a translator with us, so often times we aren't really understood. However, we still managed to obtain some information and will put something together tomorrow. The tough part of today was that our initial plan to connect the pump to the water tank will not work, as the pump cannot operate under pressure. So we ran around a great deal trying to work out a number of other alternatives, such as an electric pump, etc. However, we spoke to another team member this evening, and it looks like we can just connect a hose from the handpump and run it to the sinks when the women would like to do washing. More low tech than we were envisioning, but I think it is the best option. We will save the electric motor idea if someone ever wants to do an upgrade project in the area.

Tomorrow we will work on adjusting our design. Then there is a program put on by ASSIST at one of the villages they are working in and they have graciously invited us to attend. That will take up most of our day. On Monday, the work will begin again.

Day 5 - Friday, February 22

We arrived in Ongole this morning on the train. Unfortunately, all of the hotels were booked up (I knew this was going to happen, and should have trusted my gut instincts), which was a bit tough to deal with at 6:30 in the morning, especially after an all night train. So we finally found a place with availability, and it was definitely interesting. After we got settled in, we phoned our contact at ASSIST, the local NGO working in the Prakasam district. Mr. Murthy, our contact at ASSIST, was very nice and upon hearing where we were staying, invited us to stay at their guest house. He also contacted a local contractor and some various material vendors for us. He also offered to send some of his staff with us to the village tomorrow, as they do a great deal of work in this area as well and have a relationship with the villagers. This did a great deal to alleviate our concerns, as we were starting to feel very uneasy about the fact that both our contractor and translator had not worked out. People are remarkably hospitable here. We had three invitations just yesterday for lunch, dinner and then coffee and watermelon with either ASSIST folks or other Rotary members in the Ongole area.

Tomorrow we will visit the village! We are so excited to finally meet the people and see the place where we have done so much planning. We plan to discuss the project with the villagers to get any comments they may have, because we would like this structure to be as useful to them as possible.

Day 4 - Thursday, February 21

Today we visited a rural village near Hyderabad where a reverse osmosis plant has been installed to treat the groundwater for fluoride contamination. Groundwater is the sole drinking water source in this area, as much of the surface water is highly contaminated due to industrial activity in Hyderabad. The groundwater is impacted with high levels of fluoride, as much as 10 ppm, and TDS. So we met with the vendor that sells these small capacity RO plants to the villages for a reasonable fee, which was very interesting because RO is a great treatment option that is generally cost prohibitive (not to mention the specialized training and equipment required to maintain such a facility). One outstanding issue that we saw with this treatment technique is there is no plan of what to do with the brine solution that is produced during the treatment process. It is currently just discharged to the field outside of the plant. Another issue (and this seems global to AP) is how to accurately gauge the performance of this treatment technique when there appears to be a lack of reliable water quality labs in the state. We are off to Ongole tonight on the train, and will visit our village for the first time tomorrow morning.

Day 3, Wednesday February 20

Today we realized that several of our reagents for our water quality kit broke in transit. This was very unfortunate, as there was an entire gammut of tests we would have liked to run. So we pooled the reagents that we still have and came up with a contingency plan. We can still run several MPN tests on the community wells and one MPN test on the SODIS treated water. This will give us at least some good data to start with. I am feeling very good about the decision to bring a water quality kit, because from everyone we have spoken with, it appears that the labs available to run water quality tests for the public are not reliable. So it will be interesting to compare our results with those we have previously had analyzed at the laboratory.

In regards to our translator issues, we contacted a local NGO in the Ongole area that one of the EWB-LA members had worked with previously, and it appears that they will be able to find us a new translator and contractor. We will know more once we get to Ongole.

Day 2 - February 19

Today we spent the day in Hyderabad. It is a very large city, and we spent the morning sorting out a few errands. Ram had several guests during the day and we met some EWB-Australia members and later in the day met a representative from BREDS (Bapuji Rural Enlightenment and Development Society). This NGO works with marginalized groups in the Srikakulam District of Andhra Pradesh (approximately 10 hours north by train from our current project location) and was extremely interested in finding out more about EWB and whether we could assist them with some of the technical problems that are facing the communities that they are serving (ie., the lack of safe and stable water supplies). Their mission appeared to be in line with EWB's and we encouraged her to submit an application for assistance through EWB-USA's website. She also invited us to visit to their office in Pathapatriam for a tour of the communities that they are working with. This is something that we would love to do; however, we are unsure that it would be wise because of the limited time that we have during this implementation project. If we have extra time (as the result of a delay, etc), it would be great to take her up on her offer and reach out to other NGO's working in AP.

We did have a setback regarding our project. Unfortunately, it doesn't appear as if the translator that we had sorted our prior to arriving in India is going to work out. We were supposed to leave on the train to Ongole tonight, however, we have had minimal contact with her. We are currently in the contingency planning phase and are looking to use another translator that a previous EWB-LA member used while he was in Ongole. So this has set back our departure date from Hyderabad until tomorrow evening. Despite the delay, we plan to utilize this time wisely and work out any minor details remaining for our project. We also plan to go take a look at a reserve osmosis (RO) project that Ram is currently working on. He has installed several RO units in various villages around Hyderabad and is looking to install several more. These villages have large concentrations of fluoride in their water supply, and these units are apparently relatively easy to use and replacement parts are available locally. We would like to see these units in action, because RO is an excellent treatment option; however, it is generally not appropriate for use in villages in developing countries because of the cost and maintenance involved. Also of interest to use what is done with the waste brine that is created.

Day 1 - February 18, 2008

It was a long trip (around 38 hours in transit for me, and a little less for Deepa), but we both made it to Hyderabad safely. We are staying with our Rotary Contact, Ram, and will start working on cementing our plans in the morning. We also met Sandy, the Rotarian from Texas, who had helped to fundraise for the grant for this project.

Ram, Sandy and the other Rotarian from Texas visited Jalamma Palem on February 16 and briefed the villagers regarding our plans for this phase of the project and when we would be arriving.

EWB-SFP: India 2008 Implementation Trip

Our Project - Implementation Trip 2008
From February 17-March 22, two members from EWB-San Francisco Professionals Chapter, Kimberly Gupta and Deepa Gandhi, and a member of EWB-Los Angeles Professionals Chapter, Mike Posey, will be traveling to Andhra Pradesh, India to construct a water station in the small coastal village of Jalamma Palem. This water station will consist of the following elements: a water tank, a sink structure for washing, and a new roof structure over the sinks and water tank. We will also equip the roof with a rainwater catchment mechanism that will fill the water tank with rainwater during the monsoon season.

There is also a water quality element to this project, which I am personally very excited about. We will to construct an artificial wetland to treat the greywater discharge from the sink structure. We will also train the villagers to use SODIS, a mechanism that uses solar disinfection to inactivate E.Coli in drinking water. We believe that SODIS is an effective and sustainable method to treat the particular water quality issues in this village. However, to be sure we will perform a series of water quality testing to further characterize the source water quality and ensure that SODIS is a treatment mechanism that in fact works for Jalamma Palem.

Project History for the SFP Chapter
The EWB-San Francisco Professionals Chapter initiated the Tsunami Disaster Relief Project in 2005, and our team has been working since that time in the Prakasam District of Andhra Pradesh, India. Coastal fishing villages in this region were heavily impacted by the tsunami, and relief efforts have brought to our attention the basic necessities that were lacking in these villages even prior to the tsunami - especially their access to safe and reliable drinking water and proper sanitation. To date, our project team has accomplished:

• Conducted water quality testing to characterize the chemical and biological nature of local potable water sources
• Repaired existing wells and also installed 13 new bore wells with hand pumps in the village of Voolapalem.
• Established a maintenance committee in the village to oversee the continual operation of the wells and ensure access to potable water.