Delft University of Technology brings a solution for better water supply to Ambergris Caye

As part of their studies in international entrepreneurship and development at Delft University of Technology in Delft, Netherlands, Dann Dutilh, Wietse Schaefer and Reinout Sterk visited Ambergris Caye on Sunday, January 7th. For the past two months, the students in collaboration with Elemental Water Makers have visited various parts of the country including Hopkins, Belmopan, Placencia, Caye Caulker among others locations, educating business owners on how to produce their own water by utilizing the unlimited resources of the earth. "We focus mainly on businesses as they are the ones that consume the majority of water," said Schaefer. Desalination is the process of extracting salt components from sea water through a desalination reverse osmosis system in order to produce drinking water. According to Schaefer, Belize Consolidated Water, uses up to five thousand gallons of diesel per day at their desalination process. "It has a negative impact on the environment as the burned fossil fuels contribute to global warming. A better way is for water to be desalinated using solar and wind energy," he said.

According to the Delft University team, other advantages that resorts will get by desalinating their own water apart from being an eco-friendly solution is that they will have a reliable and independent water supply, stress-free operations and remote monitoring. "Most importantly, up to 70% will be saved on water expenses, as no diesel will be utilized or other costly components but rather the earth's resources". In addition, the extra cost to transport water to resorts north of San Pedro Town will be eliminated. "Residents north of San Pedro Town would also benefit from this project, as the flow of water in their pipes would increase, and even expand the residential water supply," said Dutilh.

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