In one of the driest parts of Kenya, FH helped people in one community gain better access to clean water while, at the same time, protecting the environment on which their very lives depend.
Years ago, the Arapal community settled on Kulal mountain, right in the middle of the forest next to a freshwater spring. The presence of this community quickly began to destroy the forest as trees were cut down and the land was degraded. This deforestation not only prevents trees from soaking up carbon dioxide from the atmosphere; it also makes the volcanic soil less stable and more prone to flooding and slip erosion.
When FH talked with community leaders about the devastation and its consequences, the leaders said they had no other way to get water except from that one spring. But after a little brainstorming and much discussion, “jointly, a way forward was reached,” our staff in Kenya say.
Members of the Arapal community provided the labor, and FH and Blood:Water Mission worked together to fund and implement a way for these families to move off the mountain and still have clean water.
