Domestic Wells

ENTRY DATE: 04.05.2015 | LAST UPDATE: 04.05.2015

CATEGORIES:

  • Water Resources
  • Groundwater use

TECHNOLOGIES MATURITY:

Applicable immediately

Technology Owners:

  • Well owners
  • Constructions companies
  • NGOs and other suppliers

Needs Address

Supply of fresh water for domestic use

Adaptation effects

Enhance economic resilience, significantly improving agricultural economies

Overview and Features

Groundwater extraction through the use of individual scale domestic wells. Covers can be applied to make wells flood resilient.

Cost

  • Costs for wells
  • Cost for construction
  • Cost for maintenance
  • Costs are much higher for constructing new wells than for covering existing wells to flood proof them – e.g. in India costs are 315 USD for flood-proofing a well compared to 1000-1500 USD to construct a new well 

Energy source

Human resources

Ease of maintenance

Require regular maintenance

Technology performance

Provide a consistent water supply to individuals, households and communities

Considerations

  • Over-extraction of groundwater can be severely detrimental to the local ecological context and must be avoided
  • Water sources must be tested to avoid the use of contaminated groundwater
  • It has been exemplified that water from deep tube wells can be safer to use than that from shallow tube wells, which can have higher contamination rates
  • Flood damage can render well unusable and contaminate water supplies, therefore covers should be installed on both existing and new well to adapt them to the impacts of increased flooding
  • Government support and subsides can aid those wishing to install wells
  • Comprehensive planning processes are needed for flood proofing existing wells to identify and prioritise those in vulnerable areas

Co-benefit, suitability for developing countries

  • Increases health and sanitation
  • Decreased arte of water borne diseases
  • Can be used in place of large scale public systems, which are often challenged by maintenance and management limitations in developing countries
  • Location of wells must be known – certain programmes in pace to support this e.g. http://www.cambodiawellmap.com/
  • Access to the use of wells and water from wells can be affected by particular social and political structures and power struggles 

Information Resources

Climate Tech Wiki, n.d. Flood resilience for protected wells. Available from: http://www.climatetechwiki.org/content/flood-resilience-protected-wells [13 January 2015]

Escamilla, V., Wagner, E., Yunus, M., Streatfield, P.K., van Geen, A., and Emcha, M. 2011. Effect of deep tube well use on childhood diarrhoea in Bangladesh. Bulletin of the World Health Organisation 89:521–527. Available from: http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/89/7/10-085530.pdf [13 January 2015]

Johnston, R., Roberts, M., Try, T. and de Silva, S. 2013. Groundwater for Irrigation in Cambodia. International Water Management Institute (IWMI), Sri Lank. Available from: http://www.iwmi.cgiar.org/Publications/issue_briefs/cambodia/issue_brief_03-groundwater_for_irrigation_in_cambodia.pdf [13 January 2015]

Practical Action, 2013. Artificial Aquifer Tube Well. Practical Action Bangladesh. Available from: http://answers.practicalaction.org/our-resources/item/artificial-aquifer-tube-well [13 January 2015]