Safe drinking water is a big concern in Bohol after the October 15 earthquake cut off water systems and disturbed the groundwater table.
Some parts of Cebu also reported discolored water from springs and wells.
A low-tech, emergency method of disinfecting water using sunlight is being pushed by the Cebu Uniting for Sustainable Water Foundation (CUSW).
Place water in a glass or polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottle, and leave it under the sun for six hours.
(PET bottles are commonly used in bottled water and soda drinks.)
The ultraviolet rays and heat kill diarrhea-causing bacteria in the water, said CUSW president Roberto Ybanez.
However, he cautioned that this should not be done daily and is a survival strategy during disasters when boiling water on a stove is not an option.
“The Department of Health said it’s not the norm here,” Ybañez told Cebu Daily News.
The Sodis method (Solar water disinfection) was pioneered by the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Sciences and Technology to address the water crisis in Africa in 2003 (visit ww.sodis.ch)
Donation drives are calling for more drinking water for the residents in Bohol
CUSW hopes to raise awareness on this matter to maximize survival strategies in desperate times of calamities and disasters.
OTHER CONTAMINANTS
“The earthquake may have disturbed the clay-limestone land formations many areas, affecting their groundwater table and underground water channels,” Jun Lucero, a senior geologist of the Mines and Geosciences Bureau – 7 (MGB-7) told Cebu Daily News.
Yellowish water emerged from sink holes found in different areas in Bohol and in Canjulao, Lapu-Lapu City.
This may be phosphatic water, said Liza Manzano, a geologist of the MGB Central Office.
“It has to be confirmed first. Bohol is 85 percent limestone and its underground layers have natural deposits of phosphate so the water turns yellow. So probably it’s phosphatic water,” she said.
Certain levels of phosphate could cause thickening of bones and teeth. level.
When found in water bodies, Manzano said this could cause fishkill. /with Inquirer and Michelle Joy L. Padayhag