Water & Wastewater Asia March/April 2019

34 | FROM THE GROUND
A DISTRICT IN VIETNAM LOOKS
TO THE SUN TO ACCESS CLEAN
WATER
Meanwhile, Vietnam finds itself to be a
country of water paradoxes — surrounded
by rivers and canals that form the
Mekong River, and yet lacks access to clean
water. This is because its water sources suffer
from pollution of heavy metals, chemicals
and bacteria. The majority of its rural
communities also do not have electricity,
which is needed to treat and transport
water.
One such area is Can Duoc, a rural district
of the Long An Province in the Mekong River
Delta region of Vietnam. With many people
living in scattered communities across a
large area, installing a pipeline to treat and
deliver clean water requires a comprehensive
network and significant investment. As a
result, for 40 years, families in this rural
district have been lacking in clean water
as it has been a challenge to raise
enough funds to build a water treatment
plant in Can Duoc.
In order to help improve access to clean water, Grundfos turned to standalone off-grid initiatives, such
as the use of solar energy to power water pumping systems
With these infrastructural challenges in
mind, in order to help improve access to
clean water, Grundfos turned to standalone
off-grid initiatives, such as the use of solar
energy to power water pumping systems.
Under its Water2Life programme, Grundfos
employees chose the Can Duoc project,
to which they donated funds for a new
water treatment plant. Solar arrays and
a solar control panel are used to partially
power the plant’s safe water access and
delivery.
Built in collaboration with local investors, the
Can Duoc pumping station uses a sand filter
for water treatment, as well as a renewable
solar inverter for the ground water pump,
and a booster pump to adjust the water
flow. Erected in just four months, the solar
technology has been instrumental in saving
energy for the pumping station. It has
also helped lower operating costs — up to
one-third of the electricity bill — for the
investors.
More importantly, this innovative solarpowered
water treatment solution now
serves 3,000 households in Can Duoc,
delivering safe water to the communities
that need them the most.
ENSURING UNIVERSAL ACCESS
TO WATER
According to PwC, nearly one in five of the
world’s population do not have access to
electricity, with 95 per cent of them coming
from developing countries in Asia and sub-
Saharan Africa.
Water & Wastewater Asia • March / April 2019