UN refugee agency UNHCR and its partners have been turning to green and non-polluting technology - including solar power - to help provide safe and clean water to Rohingya refugees. The five new networks have a pumping system that draws water from newly-installed 70,000 litres of chlorinated water tanks. “Chlorinating water helps in maintaining safe water and eliminates any risk of the spread of disease,” Murray said. “Previous water sources, mainly boreholes fitted with hand pumps, were often highly contaminated by waste water penetrating the aquifer from which the wells drew water.”The five new water networks - jointly completed by UNHCR, MSF, Oxfam and Brac - are currently providing safe water to over 40,000 refugees. Humanitarian agencies have been facing massive challenges in providing safe drinking water for refugees across the heavily congested sites, as it requires drilling of thousands of deep tube-wells and building water networks.

Source: Dhaka Tribune January 04, 2019 14:02 UTC