The Need for Water

Despite the fundamental role of water for human health, survival, and development, every one out of nine people do not have access to clean water today. 2.5 billion people do not have access to adequate sanitation, and every minute a child dies from a water-related disease.

In the short term, it may seem more cost effective to cease digging once you reach the water table. However, shallow wells are susceptible to surface contamination, contributing to diseases such as E. coli, salmonella typhi, Schistosoma, cholera and hepatitis A. This is especially true with wells on the African continent. While 30 meters — or roughly 98.42 feet — is generally considered a safe depth, Embrace Relief ensures the best quality water by digging to a depth of 45 meters — or roughly 147.64 feet.

According to the American Groundwater Trust, increasing the well depth and the length of well casing will result in a longer flow path. The longer the length of time water is in the subsurface, the likelihood that bacteria will die-off or be trapped by soil and rock improves.

In a report compiled by the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at the University of Arizona, published in February 2011, it was found that the quality of water from shallow wells was influenced by land uses in the preceding year or two. Groundwater in aquifers moves at a rate of a foot per day or a mile in 16 years.Thus, if a landfill a mile uphill leaks, they discovered, it could take years for the contaminants to reach a deep well.

Aside from contamination, shallow water wells are influenced by seasonal precipitation. Drought conditions, common to parts of Africa, can drastically lower the water table.