Natural and man-made disasters
Periodic natural disasters, such tropical cyclones, earthquakes and tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, floods and bushfires wreak havoc upon communities, lives and livelihoods. Australia and our Asia and Pacific region are especially prone. In their immediate aftermath, when normal sources and systems are disrupted, there is often an urgent need for supplies of safe fresh drinking water. It is one the ‘first things first’ items on the agenda. A rapid response is called for, and official aid agencies and international NGOs have the capability to act.
Man-made disasters, such as wars and the widespread breakdown of civil order, can have an equally devastating impact upon communities, lives and livelihoods. Whole populations can be uprooted and rendered homeless, with little or no ability to fend for themselves. Again, a ‘first things first’ priority is ensuring those forced to be refugees have access to reliable supplies of clean fresh water.
PFT 1000 can help
Their special design features make them an invaluable additional resource in meeting these global challenges:
- Emergency Relief – PFT 1000 can be held on standby, to be deployed in the immediate aftermath of natural disasters, no matter where they strike.
- Humanitarian Aid – PFT 1000 can be quickly delivered to site, to provide clean safe water storage facilities for people living in refugee camps, migrant centres, squatter settlements, etc.
PFT 1000’s special characteristics makes them ideal for these purposes:
- As flat packs, PFT 1000 have huge logistical advantages– with considerable economising on space and ease of transportation:
- PFT 1000 are easily warehoused and stockpiled, in Australia, in key locations abroad, and in destination countries.
- As the name suggests, each PFT 1000 comes as a flat-pack, and weighs only 23 kgs nett (26 kgs in the box).
- 12-14 PFT 1000 can be stored/transported per pallet,
- 400 per 40ft shipping container, 188 per 20ft container, and
- 1,200 tanks can be loaded onto a C-17 cargo plane.
- In emergency situations PFT 1000 can be air-lifted to wherever they are needed, by small aircraft or helicopter, or even dropped in by parachute.
- Arriving in destination countries, PFT 1000 can be readily down-loaded into consignments for distribution on trucks and smaller cargo vessels, then divided still further into batches suitable for local land transport vehicles, (carts, tuk-tuks, jeepneys, motor scooters, etc), inter-island, coastal and river barges and boats, or whatever. The tanks can thus be delivered to any remote or inaccessible location.
- PFT 1000 can be deployed as stand-alone water storages, and thus are able to be dispersed widely across the devastated area or refugee camp, to where they are closest to those who need them. Alternatively, they can be linked together, using standard PVC fittings, multiplying the amount of water stored in any one location, and thus creating centralised distribution points. Whilst there is no real upper limit, GreenCo Water recommends that no more than 8 PFT 1000 be so linked, making up to 8,000 litre available on one site.
- On-site assembly is quick and easy – with little initial instruction, and needing only a screwdriver, it takes around ten minutes. No special site preparation is necessary.
- In the immediate aftermath of a natural disaster, and in many of the locations of refugee camps, nearby sources of safe drinking water may not be available to be drawn upon. Pre-treated water has to be trucked in by tanker, water-carts, etc. PFT 1000 can readily receive water from these sources.
- If and when tanks are no longer required in a particular location, or are needed elsewhere, they can be easily disassembled, removed, repacked, relocated and re-used.
Given these outstanding qualities, it is no wonder the PFT 1000 has had due recognition:
2016 – winner of the prestigious AIDEX Aid Innovation Challenge.
‘the next big invention in the delivery of aid’
2017 – prizewinner in the Australian Government DFAT Humanitarian Supplies Challenge
Project Activities
As well as with DFAT, PFT 1000 has been taken up by a number of humanitarian and development agencies for trialling and evaluation: USAid, IOM, Oxfam, Rotary International, Red Cross, RedR Australia.
PFT 1000 have been trialled in Fiji, Vanuatu, P.N.G, Solomon Islands, Timor Leste, Philippines, Thailand and Yemen.
