Water Security
Despite receiving substantial annual rainfall, Southwest Bangladesh experiences significant seasonality that leads to a severe dry season. Rising sea levels, tidal flooding, and reduced river flows contribute to increased salinity levels in coastal aquifers and ponds. These conditions have created a critical drinking water shortage for over 20 million people in the coastal region, leading to health risks such as hypertension and cardiovascular disease.
Climate change is expected to worsen the water crisis in the region. While total annual precipitation may increase, the dry season will become more intense due to a significant decline in winter precipitation. The intrusion of saltwater from tidal surges and rising sea levels will further degrade freshwater sources, affecting an additional 22 million people in 19 coastal districts. Hence, it is essential to develop a scalable solution to adapt to the evolving water security risks due to climate change.
Entrepreneurship-Based Approach to Provide Water
The program has adopted an entrepreneurship-based approach to provide clean drinking water to affected communities. This involves training, financing, and providing ongoing technical support to local entrepreneurs to establish Reverse Osmosis (RO) desalination plants. These water businesses, financed sustainably through microloans, ensure the continued maintenance and operation of the RO plants, addressing the drinking water needs of the community in a sustainable manner.
Technological Solutions
To combat water scarcity, various technological solutions are being explored with the aim of using the most cost-effective solution or combination of solutions depending on the local contexts. These include:
Rainwater Harvesting: Capturing and storing rainwater during the wet season for use during the dry season.
Reverse Osmosis Desalination: Employing RO technology to desalinate brackish water at a community scale.
Aquifer Water Extraction: Utilizing deep tube wells to access freshwater from deeper aquifers