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Media Release

31 March 2006

UniSA project helps hundreds collect clean drinking water

It is a breakthrough that will improve the lives of hundreds, potentially thousands of people. And it all began with one ambitious 2nd year social sciences student from UniSA.

The “Bladders for Bangladesh” (B4B) Campaign began in 2004, and has since delivered hundreds of commercial-sized wine bladders to Bangladesh.

In Bangladesh, many people die from drinking the arsenic-contaminated water from sink wells that were installed in the 70s. The bladders will provide people with a means to collect and store their own drinking water.

Janine Tuffery, the student who spearheaded the campaign, was initially moved to action when she heard visiting Bangladeshi Professor Profulla Sarker, from the Rajshahi University, speak about the problems of Bangladesh at a lecture.

She decided that she wanted to help solve this problem, and thought that commercial wine bladders could be a perfect storage container for rainwater. So she began to canvas wineries looking for bladders that were cheap, lightweight and durable. A 200 litre bladder was then modified for the specific purpose of rain water storage.

She then teamed up with UniSA program director Peter Lumb and Prof Sarker, and that was how the “Bladders for Bangladesh” project was born.

Since then it has been all systems go. Last year B4B recruited a small but determined committee of students, and last month container loads of bladders arrived in Bangladesh’s second largest city – Chittagong – which has a population of about 3.5 million.

But in order to transport the bladders to the villages and implement them, B4B need to raise another $1,500. To do so, they have organised a fundraiser where for $10 anyone can buy a bladder and know that in just a few weeks time – a similar bladder in Bangladesh will be getting filled with clean drinking water.

Dubbed “Buy a Bladder Day”, the event will be held at Magill campus on Monday April 3rd from 2-4pm, on the grassy patch outside the Amy Wheaton building.

Tuffery says the extra money will go towards completing the final stage of the project – providing clean water support and training.

“We need to teach people how to use the bladders, because collecting rainwater is not a traditional practise in Bangladesh,” Tuffery said.

“Many people live below the poverty line, and they can’t afford rain catchment devices, so they just drink the water. They know that it has arsenic in it, and the health risks associated with arsenic – but they really have no choice.

“So these bladders can help people collect and store their own water.”



What:       “Buy a Bladder Day”
When:       2-4pm, Monday April 3
Where:     Grassy area outside Amy Wheaton Building (H Building), UniSA Magill Campus
                   Entry off St Bernards Road
Cost:         $10 for a bladder, or smaller donations gratefully accepted
 

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