Grundfos Employee Helps Bring Life To Bahamian Community
The island chain’s water supply, accessed from both a municipal system supplied by a deep well and rainwater collection systems in individual homes, was contaminated by saltwater. NGO Water Mission immediately responded by mobilizing safe water solutions to impacted communities.
MacKenzie Christie, Grundfos Senior OEM Account Manager for Water Treatment, received the invitation from Water Mission to volunteer. She always possessed the intrinsic desire to help others and has shown enthusiasm for a company that prioritizes sustainability.
“Having these worlds collide was the perfect moment for me,” said Christie. “All volunteers need to have experience in water pumps and engineering. But the most important attribute is flexibility. You could find yourself working at one site and then asked to go somewhere and do something completely different an hour later."
During her holiday vacation, Christie spent three weeks in Marsh Harbour, a small town on Great Abaco Island, producing 8,000 gallons of clean drinking water per day for the Bahamian community from a reverse osmosis (RO) system that can make 30,000 gallons at full capacity. The RO system is ideal for purifying water in areas with little to no freshwater sources.
Christie was stationed at a dock in Marsh Harbour alongside Dominique Munnings, a local resident. For 8 hours each day, they pulled in saltwater from the harbor, then used media filters and secondary cartridge filters to remove contaminants, which lowers water turbidity. For the final step, an RO membrane array pumped clean drinking water into storage units – a 2,500 gallon bladder and a 2,500 gallon tank.
A strong background in chemical engineering and industrial water treatment prepared Christie for the responsibilities that came with operating the entire RO system, which to prevent theft included deconstructing the system part by part at the end of each day. With enthusiasm, she called it a great technical learning experience.
“You learn a lot under those pressurized situations – about systems that you see every day in industrial plants. You become one of the operators. I changed out the cartridge filters and the membranes. I even went diving to clean the foot valve,” said Christie.
Grundfos pumps also made a lasting impression on Great Abaco Island. A Grundfos MQ pressure boosting pump was used to distribute water from all water sources to the truck to local Intermediate Build Container (IBC) tanks. In addition, approximately 300 MQ pumps were distributed so residents could pump water back into their cisterns and have safe drinking water pumped to their houses.
But not everyone had a roof over their head. Most of the displaced lived in tents next to their uninhabitable houses. Marsh Harbour was torn apart, yet people’s hearts remained intact. Even with so few possessions, residents asked Christie if there was anything she needed. It was during these experiences when she learned that for Water Mission to be successful, the organization first needs to become involved with the community and environment.
“We were so well received by the community,” she said. “In a disaster response scenario, Water Mission adjusts to community needs as they arise. When a permanent solution needs to be implemented, they go in six months beforehand to evaluate the community, understand why they aren’t using safe water, and understand their education about safe water. Water Mission hires locally to implement a sustainable factor into their solutions, and I think they’re a wonderful partner for that.”
More than one and a half million people around the world have received safe water as a result of the Water Mission and Grundfos partnership that began in 2007. The organization’s mission, to bring clean and safe drinking water to people in developing countries, directly aligns with Grundfos’ Strategy 2025, to help provide water to 300 million people.
Christie will return to Abaco if she is needed. She plans to continue volunteering for Water Missions, provide sustainable and efficient products in her Grundfos sales role, and be a strong influence by supporting SDGs 6 and 13.
Source: Grundfos