In early October, Multipure’s Pure Foundation sent a team to Puerto Rico to provide aid and assistance to the people affected by the devastation of Hurricane Maria. The storm destroyed water, power, and communication infrastructure throughout the island, leaving many without access to basic necessities.
The Waterbox is a multi-stage self-contained emergency water purification system. It is designed to take the worst possible water out there and turn it into clean drinking water. It uses a military-grade version of Multipure’s PureBlock Technology – the same technology used in Multipure’s Aqualuxe drinking water system. One set of Waterbox filter cartridges can clean THOUSANDS of liters of water. The Waterbox systems for Puerto Rico were retrofitted to run off of solar panels as less than 12% of the island has electricity, making the system totally self-contained and environmentally friendly.
Neighbors bringing containers to fill with pure clean drinking water… This neighborhood finally has reliable access to clean drinking water and can breathe a small sigh of relief now that they don’t have to worry about drinking water that may make them seriously ill.
Drinking water is a particularly difficult challenge for tens of thousands of Puerto Ricans; although Puerto Rico is a tropical island, and surface water is plentiful, nearly all of it has been contaminated by the storm. A mixture of industrial pollutants, agricultural runoff, and human waste have spread throughout water sources and left the drinking water supply in crisis.
Another day, another WaterBox in action! Dirty creek water no more. Happy to see that Hector is putting the WaterBox to use serving his neighborhood.
We have been reminded just how fragile and precious our water supplies are, and just how crucial it is for families to have contingencies in place to protect this essential resource. While some find solace in plastic bottled water, we must remember that it is at best a short-term solution – bottled water is finite, it is bulky, and it is expensive. And given a recent study that found that over 94 percent of US tap water is contaminated with plastic fibers*, it is itself a contributor to drinking water pollution.
The fact is that for many people, the quality and safety of their drinking water is taken for granted. Recent natural disasters have shown the danger of that assumption. And often ongoing crises – in Flint, Michigan, in North Carolina, and in Virginia in just the past few years – have highlighted the vulnerability of our water supplies.
Multipure’s Pure Foundation also delivered WaterBox systems to branches of the Boys and Girls Clubs in the towns of Bayamon, Las Margaritas, and Isabella, and set up additional WaterBox systems in the towns of Caguas and Naranjito.
Through these efforts, Multipure’s Pure Foundation worked to alleviate some of the suffering of those affected by Hurricane Maria, and remains committed to providing ongoing assistance to the people of Puerto Rico.
For additional information, please visit https://www.facebook.com/multipurefoundation/