Mission: to improve the well-being of children and their families...

...in the Tampa Bay region, Florida, and low- and middle-income countries (e.g., in Sub-Saharan Africa) by reducing exposure to Pb (lead) and other toxic metals in drinking water.

Over the past two years, we have partnered with a Malagasy nongovernmental organization (Ranontsika), pump manufacturers, and pump owners to adapt 1,000 pumps (of an estimated 9,000 total) to non-Pb components. Ranontsika provides a viable solution for provision of safe water to communities through a social business service model where locally sourced water is treated and sold at production stations or delivered to homes for an affordable price. We also partnered with local health clinics and staff to test children for blood lead levels (BLLs) and determine routes of exposure that may lead to unsafe BLLs.

After retrofitting hand pumps with non-Pb components, we have shown that Pb concentrations are reduced below the WHO drinking water guideline of 10 µg/L in 98% of pumps. We have also shown through modeling a decrease in associated blood lead levels. We also estimate our improved pump system of just a few dollars results in economic savings associated with IQ loss in children exposed to Pb of over $US10,000 per child (quite a positive cost benefit ratio).

A collaboration between USF's Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering and Engineering for International Development Program, and College of Public Health and the WHO Collaborating Center for Social Marketing and Social Change