Moldovan Villagers Learn How to Prevent Groundwater Pollution

by Vitaly Golovaty

The Reut, a tributary of the Dniester, is the largest river in Moldova. Its basin encompasses one-quarter of the republic, and the underground water formed in the basin is a primary source of drinking water for the population. The Reut River basin also includes the country's major industrial centers, a large network of sugar and canning plants, and many large livestock facilities. In recent years, with the development of private farming, the number of farm animals in the private sector has been increasing rapidly. This has led to the accumulation of large amounts of dung and other farming waste products in the public areas of towns and villages.

All these factors, which are having a negative effect on the quality of the basin's ground water, need to be constantly monitored. Such monitoring would help in developing recommendations for improving the water. Although local health officials are in charge of water monitoring, they do not inform the public about the results of their analyses. Without input from local people, it has been impossible to quickly identify and eliminate pollution sources, which are contaminating wells and affecting the health of the population.

Agroeko, a Moldovan environmental organization, planned and conducted a 20-day expedition in the Reut Basin to raise public awareness about the need to protect sources of drinking water. The expedition included two phases. The first week-long phase encompassed the Dondyushansky, Yedinetsky and Ryshkansky regions, while the second two weeks included the Ryshkansky, Drokiyevsky, Glodyansky and Feleshtsky regions, as well as the city of Belts. Expedition members conducted studies of the environmental condition of the villages and towns they visited, and identified pollution sources such as livestock-related facilities and farms, illegal garbage dumps, chemical storage areas, primitive toilet facilities and dung heaps in courtyard areas.

The expedition members used a quick method of testing ground water samples that made it possible to show clear links between water quality and farming and sanitation practices in the villages. Rather than waiting months for results, villagers could see the results of the tests while expedition members were at the scene and able to explain them.

For example, while the expedition members were testing the water in the village of Sken, they were approached by a 25-year-old man who said that he had a two-month-old baby and that he would like to find out the quality of the water his family used. A test of the man's water sample showed that the concentration of nitrates and nitrites was six times above the allowable norm. Such a concentration made it dangerous for anyone to use water from this well. Later the expedition members studied the area around the well from which the sample was taken and discovered a huge dung pile.

Another time, while the expedition was working near the village of Rediul Mare, an elderly woman approached the members with a bottle of water to request an analysis. It turned out that her bottle contained the cleanest water in the village. The old woman then explained that "since time immemorial" her family had considered natural springs to be sacred, therefore her family kept the springs clean and looked after them. This elderly woman had a concrete-lined hole in her yard for collecting dung. There was no trash in her yard, and her outhouse also had a concrete lining. Thus, this woman was able to preserve the quality of her drinking water and, thereby, her own health.

At first, plans called for testing only selected samples taken from 10 to 20 wells in each village, but the enormous interest among the local population drew dozens of people with bottles filled with water from their wells to the sites outside the villages where the expedition was encamped. By the end of the first stage of the expedition, the chemicals required for testing the water ran out, so great was the response from local villagers who wanted their water tested. Members of the second expedition made certain to bring enough of the chemicals to satisfy the public demand. By the end of the project, samples from over 688 wells had been tested.

Expedition members worked with farm heads, local health officials and the local media to organize and publicize public meetings. At these meetings, the expedition members reported the results of their analysis of the quality of the subterranean water and gave out information brochures on how water quality affects public health. They also held water filter demonstrations. The members offered practical advice on how to improve environmental and health conditions in the surrounding areas, by eliminating illegal garbage dumps, dealing with large dung heaps and protecting wells from pollutants.

The results of the expedition were soon evident. In many villages, the people, with the support of the local governments, transformed their new knowledge into action. In the village of Reutsel in the Faleshtsky Region, a citizens' meeting approved a decision to divide the village into 40 separate sections. In each section, a "green patrol" was formed. The village identified garbage sites to which all the villagers had to bring their dung and garbage. The local government was empowered to punish violators by imposing fines for the dumping of dung or trash at an unsanctioned site. The green patrols monitor the situation. Now the village is clean. Follow-up tests of the water quality by the expedition in this village found that the level of pollution in the drinking water had fallen sharply.

After the expedition, tests on the samples were conducted in laboratory conditions and a map was prepared to show the environmental condition of the water in the region. Using the results of the expedition, Agroeko members developed proposals for improving the environmental and health situation in rural villages during the privatization of farms. These proposals were sent to the Ministry of Health and the Environmental Protection Department, and later they were taken into consideration in the drafting of a law on toxic wastes approved by Moldova's Parliament.

After the expedition was over, members of Agroeko continued to think about ways to reduce agricultural wastes. What could be done so that waste products might be usefully employed? Agroeko has since begun consulting with an environmental company that proposes to construct a plant for reprocessing wastes. Currently the Moldovan Parliament is reviewing the project. During preliminary reviews, the project was well received, so there is every hope that Parliament will approve the project.

Vitaly Golovaty is a program assistant for ISAR-Kyiv. Translated by Andrew Reese. Agroeko, 96 Yalovensky Street, Apartment 20, Kishenev, Moldova; phone: (0422) 56-24-30, fax: (0422) 226-54-40; e-mail: eco@cni.md