Preserver l'eau / Water conservation

(Anglophones, please scroll down - English version at the end)

     Apres une courte etape a Madurai, l'equipe EW poursuit sa descente vers le Sud. Un sejour d'une dizaine de jours a Tirunelveli a permis aux membres de travailler avec le SCAD, notre ONG partenaire:

     - Visite de leurs campus (les frais d'inscription aux ecoles d'ingenieurs permettent a l'association de financer des programmes d'aide au developpement),

     - Rencontres et echanges avec les enfants handicapes physiques et mentaux des ecoles du SCAD,

     - Echanges avec les specialistes du centre de recherche agricole (agriculture biologique),

     - Decouverte d'un "digester" (station de transformation des dechets pouvant traiter jusqu'a 24 000 litres de dechets par jour et le transformer en fertilisant liquide biologique ainsi qu'en gaz naturel permettant l'approvisionnement en energie du lieu).

     Mais aussi inauguration des deux derniers systemes de recuperation d'eau pluviale finances par EW. Les fonds d'EW ont, en effet, permis la construction de plus d'une dizaine de ces systemes. Les citernes - d'une capacite de 10 000 litres - sont adossees a l'ecole du village (souvent seul batiment en dur). Un filtre (charbon, petits cailloux, sable) assure la potabilite de l'eau. Tout un village a ainsi acces a l'eau potable et les enfants, habituellement charges de sa recuperation, peuvent aller a l'ecole.

     L'equipe a donc inaugure les deux dernieres installations. L'accueil a ete, comme toujours, tres chaleureux. Le Directeur de l'ecole, les instituteurs, les ecoliers, les parents etaient presents. Selon la tradition, chaque membre a recu une guirlande de jasmin et d'oeillets, a ete beni et marque d'un bindi (point rouge et jaune) sur le front. Puis, le ruban officiel a ete coupe et la fete a pu commencer: the, eau de coco, chants et danses des enfants avec participation de l'equipe EW.

     Dans le cadre de ses projets "verts", EW souhaiterait egalement lancer la construction de toilettes seches. Ces toilettes evitent le gaspillage de l'eau, elles n'utilisent que de la sciure de bois ou des dechets vegetaux. Elles ne degagent aucune odeur nauseabonde et permettent la fabrication de compost. A cette fin, l'equipe a visite un village de la region de Tuticorin (petite ville portuaire proche de Tirunelveli) ou 125 toilettes seches ont ete installees (pour plus d'information, consultez http://www.eco-solutions.org/). Malgre les reticences initiales et les inconvenients dus aux inondations pendant la mousson, la population commence peu a peu a les accepter.

Toilettes seches / Dry toilets

     A Kanyakumari, dernier programme de la mission Inde 2011, l'equipe fera notamment le point sur d'autres projets "verts". Ce sujet fera partie de l'ensemble des discussions que nous aurons avec nos partenaires ici.

    A bientot, EW. 

(NB - VOIR PLUS LOIN POUR TROUVER D'AUTRES PHOTOS)

English Version - 1st, be sure to click on the videos above...

     After a few days in Madurai, the EW team stopped off to visit the Tirunelveli project for about 10 days. While there, the EW team was able to accomplish the following goals :

-  Visits to different schools and Polytechnics (part of the tuition generated from these educational institutions is used to subsidize outreach programs for the impoverished).

-  Networking with the educators, specialized therapists and children involved in the center for physically and mentally-challenged kids. Lots of progress has been made since our last visit 2 years ago!

-  A visit to the "KVK Center" - specialized in all aspects of bio-agriculture and sustainability (soil testing, water conservation, kitchen gardens, supplementary income via micro-freshwater fishing operations in the villages...)

-  An introduction to the new bio-digester. The technology has been imported from Australia.  The unit can handle up to 24,000 liters of organic waste per day - and turn it into liquid bio-fertilizer and a kind of natural gas which provides free energy on site.

-  And most importantly, EW was able to inaugurate 2 of the new rain-water harvesting systems that have been installed since 2009.  EW has financed more than a dozen such systems - each one providing a capacity of 10,000 liters of drinking water to highly "water-stressed" villages.  Any available rainwater is first filtered and then stocked right at the school (often the only building with a suitable roof for collection purposes). This is invaluable for the village itself and also helps ensure school attendance, as no children are forced to walk long distances to go collect water for their families. 

     Everyone in the two villages - the entire teaching staff, school children and village locals - reserved a very warm welcome.  EW members received the traditional jasmine-and-marigold garlands, a Hindu blessing and were marked by a red and yellow "bindi" on the forehead.  Then the EW President cut the inaugural ribbon, and the ceremony was followed by tender coconut milk drinks, songs and dances, many words of well-wishing.



After the 1st ribbon-cutting ceremony, water is flowing in another village ! / 1ere inauguration

     Within the framework of its different green activities, EW would also like to encourage the construction of "dry toilets", thereby preserving precious drinking water for essential needs.  No water is necessary at all - instead ash or dry organic waste (wood chips, etc) is used to directly create compost and the systems produce no foul odors.

The 2nd inauguration - here at one of the primary schools in the "Tuticorin Dry Belt" / 2e inauguration

 



    Toward this end, EW went to visit 2 small villages near Tuticorin (a small port town on the Palk Staits, on the coast just across from Sri Lanka) where 125 dry toilets have been installed in the last few years. This is virtually the 1st such experiment of its kind in all of India (the same technology is just beginning to be used in France !)  There were some complaints of problems with the new toilet facilities during the monsoon season but globally villagers were highly satisfied, particularly as prior to these toilets, there was no hygiene in the village at all.  For more information, don't hesitate to click on the following link - http://www.eco-solutions.org/).

     EW will continue its green activities in Kanyakumari (Cape Comorin) - its last program in Tamil Nadu, along with the school-twinning project with Montamise Primary School and substantial work in the area of microcredit for Dalit women.  More very soon and best wishes from EW.



Here are all the kids out next to their new RWH system, with principal and teachers in the background / 2e inauguration