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RSVP deadline is Nov. 7
The Lafayette chapter of Engineers Without Borders (EWB) has been working since 2003 to bring clean, safe drinking water to rural villages in Honduras. The students are raising funds to begin work on their third project in Honduras, in the village of El Convento.
A fundraising dinner will be held Saturday, Nov. 15 in the Bergethon Room of Marquis Hall. The event will begin with a reception at 6 p.m. followed by dinner at 7 p.m. and include a silent auction during the evening. The event is open to the public. Tickets are $100 per person. Donations are also welcome from those unable to attend the dinner.
The reservation deadline is Nov. 7. Reservations can be made by contacting Kristen Tyler’ 10 at (310) 803-0392 or through email.
EWB is currently completing its second project, which entails constructing a filtration system and a four-kilometer pipeline that supplies clean drinking water to 22 families in the village of La Fortuna, Honduras. Proceeds from the dinner will help support the group’s third project, which includes building a groundwater-based system in the village of El Convento.
Ten students travelled to Honduras this summer to continue work on the water system in La Fortuna and map out springs and other water sources in El Convento. Students plan to return this January to complete the water pipeline in La Fortuna, create an “as built” plan of the water pipeline, and construct latrines with the community. The students will also work with the El Convento residents to evaluate options for their water system. EWB actively encourages participation from the community with regard to important decisions for their water system.
The La Fortuna project is a gravity-fed system, which means that the water flows downhill from the springs by gravity. The system consists of two pipelines–one with drinkable water and the other one with non-drinkable water for uses such as washing. The drinkable water is treated with a slow sand filtration system. The use of two pipelines eliminates the need to filter all water.
For the El Convento project, the students are evaluating two options: the use of spring water versus ground water. Ground water is generally cleaner than spring water, so water quality is less of a concern. Ground water wells can be located near the community, but a pump is needed to draw the water up to the surface from some distance underground. Spring water, on the other hand, can operate without a pump and use a gravity-fed system to transport water to the village. However, more pipes will be needed since the springs are located far from the community. The pipelines have been the biggest cost contributor for the first two villages with which EWB has worked.
Lagunitas, with 270 residents, was the first Honduran village with which EWB worked. A water distribution system was designed and installed together with the residents in a project that spanned 2004-07. Lafayette’s EWB chapter was established in 2003 with this purpose in mind.