Kenya Installs The First Solar Power Plant That Transforms Ocean Water Into Drinking Water

While most of us, who also have the privilege of using the Internet on a daily basis and therefore are able to read this, don't have any problems getting fresh drinking water, that's not the case for everyone. Around 2.2 billion people struggle because they don't have safe access to drinking water which could seem pretty ironic considering we live on a planet that is 2/3 water. But no need for those long faces as there might be a solution to this problem. Recently, the NGO Give Power installed a solar-powered plant that transforms salty ocean water into fresh drinking water and thus helps 25,000 people a day! More info: Give Power

Even though this is not their first similar project, Give Power recently had huge success in installing a new plant that transforms saline water into drinking water in Kiunga, a small town in Kenya and even had its pilot test in August which has already improved the lives of residents of the town. The organization doesn't plan to stop there and wants to use the technology in other parts of the world.

Even though it's commonly thought that 1/3 of people don't have access to drinking water, the problem is much bigger in some regions, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. Therefore, the Kenyan town of Kiunga was chosen for the installment of this plant specifically to tackle this problem and help as many people as possible. After this success, the organization is already planning similar projects in Colombia and Haiti.

The desalination process that's crucial in turning salt water into drinking water is very power-consuming and therefore expensive. Therefore, using solar energy might be a very good long-term solution. Give Power installed what they call "a solar water farm" in Kiunga that harvests solar energy using solar panels. They are able to produce 50 kilowatts of energy and power 2 water pumps 24 hours a day.

Before the installment of this technology, people sometimes had to travel for more than an hour just to get some drinking water for themselves and their families. Since every drop of fresh water was so precious, they would usually bathe and wash their clothes in dirty salt water which is very harsh on the skin.

Hayes Barnard, president of GivePower, said, “You see children inside of these villages, and they’ve got these scars on their stomachs or their knees because they got so much salt in their wounds. They were basically poisoning their families with this water." But the installment of the plant did not only help them with that but also saved them from various diseases, since the water they earlier commonly used was often full of pollutants and various parasites. What a huge step for humanity!