Professor Amy Pickering is part of a team of researchers to develop a novel and inexpensive chlorine dispensing device to improve the safety of drinking water in regions lacking resources and infrastructure.
The device releases measured amounts of chlorine into water as it exits the tap, eliminating water-borne pathogens and reducing the spread of fatal diseases like cholera, typhoid fever and diarrhea.
According to the CDC, 1.6 million people die from diarrheal diseases each year, half of whom are children. By reducing the spread of diarrheal diseases, the device offers a relatively simple solution to this problem.
Pickering and her team tested the device at several water collection stations across rural Kenya. The device proved not only effective, but highly convenient and easy to maintain. Researchers are hopeful that its efficacy and low cost will encourage widespread adoption and scaling up.
The study, which also examines the economic feasibility and local demand for the device, was published in NPJ Clean Water.