ACT_The dual benefit of water saving

Recharging well – The dual benefit of water saving and flood management

ACT (Arid Communities & Technologies) - It is a professional voluntary organization based in the arid region of Kutch. The aim of the organization is to strengthen the livelihoods of communities in arid and semi-arid regions by supporting communities to resolve ecological constraints through facilitation, or by providing access to technologies and also to endangering technological and institutional solutions.

Project location: Jubilee colony, Bhuj, Gujarat

Need:

Water logging after the rain is a problem in a lot of areas across urban Gujarat due to multiple reasons such as increase in impervious and paved area, encroachment of lakes and water bodies, reduced tree cover and increased rainfall intensity. Jubilee colony in Bhuj faced water logging issues until 2011. In the year 2011, it rained around 10”-12” in a day and the whole city faced a flood situation. There existed an ancient drain, but it was not functional to let the colony’s surface water be drained into it resulting in flooding.

Work Done

So to get the solution of this situation, the team of ACT got contacted for the same. The team had visited the site and identified the common plot to do a recharging bed as a solution.
The whole common plot had been paved with perforated interlocking paver blocks with recharging wells in between.
The place had been dug till 10 -15 feet to remove the layer of clay as the whole colony was built on the lake where they filled the clay and soil to make the land flat.
In the dug part, layers of stone and jelly had been laid so that water gets filtered first and then recharges into the ground.
Within this, three recharge wells were constructed which were 15 feet deep, 7 feet diameter and one of them has a 120 feet deep bore well constructed in it.
Now the place serves as a playground as well as a recharging bed. Also the bore well has now water at 60 feet after the groundwater recharge. The bore well water also has been used by installing a solar pump at the location. Along with the design and technical guidance, ACT also helped the colony with 60% of the total cost; 20% cost was covered by Bhuj Nagarpalika and the rest 20% was covered by 30 members of the Jubilee colony.

Benefits:

The bore well in the common plot of the Jubilee colony has now water at 60 feet after the groundwater recharge; which previously used to be at 120 feet and the water quality like TDS has improved from 2000 ppm to 550 ppm.
Water which was going into the drain, is now seeping into the ground in this area and that way water logging in monsoon is being taken care of, also in summer this water can be used when needed.

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