Water shortages in small villages with limited financial resources can be lessened by the construction of a micro-dam, relying on locally available materials and community participation.
| Title | Hand-built earthen micro-dams : appropriate technologies for village self-development |
| Publication Type | Miscellaneous |
| Year of Publication | 1988 |
| Authors | Goertzen, T |
| Pagination | ca. 130 p.: fig., ill. |
| Date Published | 1988-01-01 |
| Publisher | Mennonite Central Committee |
| Place Published | Akron, PA, USA |
| Keywords | appropriate technology, burkina faso gaoua kolondioura, case studies, community participation, construction, dams, maintenance, manuals, self-help labour, small-scale activities, soils, villages, water storage |
| Abstract | Water shortages in small villages with limited financial resources can be lessened by the construction of a micro-dam, relying on locally available materials and community participation. This manual presents the MCC-Gaoua programme for the construction of basic compacted earth micro-dams and a few variations. The materials used are clayey and silty soils, sand, rocks, mud bricks and wire mesh. Surveying is done with water-tube levels, strings and stakes, and the construction is done with pickaxes and hand tamping tools. Related projects to be discussed or presented after the dam is completed include well installation near the dam, contour barriers, fish-farming, and small-scale irrigation for gardens, tree nurseries and other agricultural projects. A suggested schedule of meetings with villagers is given, including topics for discussion. All technical information is given, including a section on water-borne disease and control. A socio-economic survey form is included in the appendices. |
| Notes | 23 ref. |
| Custom 1 | 217, 824 |
