August 1, 2024, by ZY
Water4Life 2: A clean water project for a Penan community in Sarawak
In mid-August 2024, a team of six professionals—including engineers, a biomedical scientist, and pharmacists—from the University of Nottingham Malaysia (UNM) and Engineers Without Borders Malaysia (EWBM) will be travelling to Long Kahoo, Baram, Sarawak. Their goal is to complete a water system that channels spring water into the village, sustainably improving the living conditions of the Penan community in this remote part of the world.
This high-impact multidisciplinary project involves staff and alumni from different department and school. The Penan, traditionally nomadic hunter-gatherers, have been severely affected by large-scale deforestation, which has compromised their food sources and living conditions. Although many Penans have settled or semi-settled, the lack of clean water remains a critical issue for Long Kahoo.
The local contacts for this project are SACCESS* and REACH*. Representative from SACCESS made the maiden research trip in June 2023 and followed by the reconnaissance trip led by Ioannes Tang and his team in January 2024 to initiate the construction of a dam and provide initial resources to the community (Figure 1).
Figure 1. Ioannes Tang, from the Department of Civil Engineering explained to the Penan community about the plan for the water piping system during his reconnaissance trip in January 2024.
Currently, the villagers use rainwater and a self-connected small stream water from the back of the village. During dry seasons, the villagers must carry water from the Patah River in front of the longhouse for household use while bathing in the river. Patah River is polluted and dirtied by upriver logging, plantations and logging camp activities. Their supply of clean water is unpredictable and weather dependent. The massive deforestation has severely affected the viability of this indigenous community which relies of water and other products from the forest for their basic survival.
Figure 2. The Long Kahoo community lives in this single row of longhouse building of 15 “bilik”, with some unfinished, housing about 20 families with a total population of between 70 – 80 people during peak periods.
With clean water, the health of the villagers is anticipated to improve dramatically. The effects are expected to be most pronounced in the young children is plagued by frequently infections linked to contaminated water supply.
This project is funded by the Cascade Nottingham* and Climb for Life* initiatives and is being carried out in collaboration with EWBM. In addition, we plan to have simple health checks for the community and provide basic advice and over-the-counter medications for the villagers. Sponsors, including Pahang Pharmacy, Be Pharmacy, MTIS 3D and Lions club of KL City, have generously contributed basic medicines, health supplements, and 3D-printed tools.
This project will address several United Nations Sustainable Development Goals: (3) Good Health and Well-Being, (6) Clean water and sanitation, and (10) Reduced inequalities.
Figure 3. Building materials delivered to Long Kahoo during the reconnaissance trip led by Ioannes in January 2024 to initiate the construction of a dam.
Figure 4. Long Kahoo is accessible by 4X4 vehicle from Long Lama until Long Luteng, a journey of about 3 hours on Logging Road. From Long Luteng, it is another boat ride of less than 30 minutes downriver through winding river with still dense forests. This is the Patah River in front of the long house.
Contacts:
General enquiry: Ting Kang Nee at kang-nee.ting@nottinghamedu.my ; or
Specific project enquiry: Ioannes Tang at ioannes.tang@nottingham.edu.my
Members of the team:
- Ioannes Tang, Civil Engineering
- Ting Kang Nee, School of Pharmacy, Pharmacy Nottingham alumni
- Kenny Voon, Division of Biomedical Sciences, School of Pharmacy
- Sanjiv Indran, EWBM, Mechanical, Materials and Manufacturing Engineering Nottingham alumni
- Jonathan Lim, EWBM
- Khoo Li Ying, Pharmacy Nottingham alumni
Footnotes:
SACCESS is a Kuching-based non-profit entity established in 1994 that offers “Information, Documentation and Research Consultancy Services” in support of human rights – including Native Customany Rights (NCR) – democracy, justice and equality in primarily Sarawak.
REACH (Rural Expeditions Assisting Community Health is a homegrown, non-profit team, run entirely by local volunteers, who share a vision for universal healthcare access.
Cascade Nottingham – Funding transformative student projects thanks to donations from alumni and friends of The University of Nottingham
Climb for Life – High-altitude climbing expeditions initiated by Prof. Ting Kang Nee to raise donations from individuals and companies in support of wellbeing projects for the Penan community in Baram, as well as cancer patient support and public cancer education campaigns.
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