These are some of the
photographs of the wildlife that I came across whilst I was out in
Zambia locating ground water sources for the local Villages. I was on
my own when I took these photograph and as you can see in some cases I
was only a few feet away.
Each year Peter freely volunteers two weeks of his own time in Zambia paying
for it from his own funds. While there he uses his skills to pinpoint the
precise location for the wells to be dug.
Below you will
see details of work carried out during the last visit in 2007/8. Permission has
been given by village water to share these photos with you. Much of the work
done in Zambia is made possible by dowsers and diviners who freely volunteer
their time and pay their own airfares and expenses to travel to Zambia to do
this work. You can read Peter's
2008 trip report
here.
This was taken at an orphanage in a place called
Kaoma together with the sister who was looking after the children
When we were out in Zambia in 2006/7 we used to be out in the bush
to find water for the local communities for at least twelve hours
a day and then come back to base where we would have a real big
feast to relax after the long days searching. We day whilst we
were out there for at least three to four weeks at a time.
Village Water Field
Trip to Zambia 2007 - Click the thumbs to read the full article
Some of Peter's photos
from previous trips...
These photos were taken in the western province in
2007 & 2008. Some towns will be mentioned but if people are
interested in following up the photograph locations then it could be a
good idea for them to contact www.villagewater.org who I am sure will be quite happy to help.
Our project schedule was to locate a minimum of 3 sites per day, each
day, apart from Sundays, we were starting from sunrise to sunset.
Zambian update - Kaoma school
The well at Kaoma school is still
providing water for the 300 children. This year it also provided for the
whole town of Kaoma, when the town water supply ran dry.
In this photo we see dowser John Baines, together
with Teddy and his wife, who set up the school. In the foreground is the
well, and behind them the school buildings.
Many of the villages have no well at
all - the villagers carry water to the village from distant water holes. Having a
well installed in the village can make a massive difference to the lives of
the villagers. Peter helps to locate the water, and checks previously
installed wells.
2010 update
Kandiana Malala
This village was without water or sanitation before Peter
Taylor visited with
the
Village Water Charity organisation. The people there were starving because they did not have
water to grow their crops.
This photograph was taken in September
2007. It shows the site location for the well
This shows the new laundry area in Kandiana
Malala where the villagers can now wash
their clothes, the water runs away to a soak away seen in the
foreground. To the left you can see yellow canisters of water; these
are taken from the well which is located away from the laundry.
This
shows the protection around the well to keep the animals away and keep
the well hygienic. On the right you can see the stakes extending out
from the main shelter, this is to protect the run off from the well.
The well is located away from the village, and with very little in the
way of tools the villagers cleared away all the scrub between the well
and the village leaving the area clear.
This
is another photo of the washing area showing the slab where the
clothes are washed and the runoff, the village is in the distance.
This
is a view of the well from the other side - you can see the outline of
the well in the shelter. As a result of the well dysentery is now a
rare occurrence in the village - in removing disease the well has been
truly life saving.
Here
are the crops that the villagers have been able to grow as a direct
result of the well installed for their village by Village Water.
Senanga Orphanage School
Peter
Taylor map dowsed for the location of this underground water before he
even set off for Zambia - this saves him time in the field.
Before Village water arrived this school had mains water for only 4
hours a day - the water was switched off at 12 midday. Here we see
John Irwin of Village Water talking via an interpreter to the local
sanitation advisor. The school is assembled at the well opening
ceremony, they are thanking village water for the well and the
sanitation advice given.
Here
is the well at Senanga ready to be fenced in.
Here
the school staff gather around the well. In Zambia all schools are
painted blue and white - the school buildings can be seen here on the
right.
Village Water is a charitable organisation based in the
UK who employ people in Zambia to locate the outlying villages in need
of water and sanitation. They use local well diggers to dig out and create
the wells. Up until 2009 they used to have volunteer dowsers, like Peter,
from the UK to give their time and go with them to the western province.
However, in 2009, Village Water decided to train and use local well
diggers to carry out the dowsing work. This means that the people are more
self sufficient and will be able to locate water all year round. It also
means that they can utilise the art of dowsing in Zambia. Peter still
intends to go back to Zambia to continue to support the local people by
locating water sites.
