WorldWide Drilling Resource

93 WorldWide Drilling Resource ® DECEMBER 2014 Third-World Countries Get a Helping Hand Adapted from Information by the National Ground Water Research and Educational Foundation The National Ground Water Research and Educational Foundation (NGWREF) announced the most recent grant awards for its Developing Nations Fund. The four projects are located in Haiti, Malawi, the Philippines, and Uganda. Grants totaling $40,000 will be used to help provide safe drinking water and improve water sup- plies for people in developing economies. Grant award winners are: Engineers Without Borders, USA (EWB) , Phi ladelphia Professional Chapter - EWB Phi l ly’s Water for Life project focuses on the communi ty of Apatut, located in the Balaoan municipality of the province of La Union, Philippines. The goal of the project is to provide a distributed potable water source to the 800 residents and 300 school children in Apatut. NGWREF is providing a $14,000 grant which will be used for groundwater source develop- ment (deep well drilling), pumping, treat- ment, storage, and gravity distribution to provide water for the community. Haiti Mission Inc. (HMI) - The goal of this organiza- tion is to bring potable water to within 500 f ee t o f each f ami l y i n t he Jeremie, Haiti area. The foundation is providing a $5000 grant to help fulfill this mission. Lloyd Duplantis, an NGWA Honorary Award winner, accepted the gift on behalf of the group and said, “HMI is proud to represent the best of what NGWREF stands for, especially as it pertains to freshwater well drilling in developing nations.” Hope 2 One Life Inc. - A 2011 and 2013 Developing Nations grant recipi- ent, Hope 2 One Life has received another grant for $9,475 for a groundwater devel- opment project at the Lairobe Village and Moroto West area in the Palabek District in northern Uganda. The wells funded by this grant will pro- vide potable community groundwater supplies to more than 400 village resi- dents and farmers, replacing surface waters and mudholes. Mzuzu Un i ve r s i t y Cen t r e o f Excellence in Water and Sani tat ion - The grant to Mzuzu University in north- ern Malawi will be the first educational and training pro- gram to be funded by the Foundation’s Developing Nations Fund. The $11,525 grant will fund a five- day conference targeted toward drilling professionals, pump installers, govern- ment employees, and students. Topics such as proper well construction, ethics, drilling fluid application, and project sus- tainability will be taught. 9-1-1 is a Life Line, Not an Information Line Adapted from a Press Release by E-Comm 9-1-1 Whenever there is a police, fire, or medical emergency, most people know to call 9-1-1. Unfortunately, not every- one who calls 9-1-1 is actually experi- encing an emergency. “What people don’t realized is that when they call 9-1-1 for information or any other reason that is not an emergency, they’re tying up valuable resources that are meant to be at the ready for people who are in serious need of help,” stated Matthew Collins, an E-Comm 9-1-1 call taker. In an effort to bring attention to the ongoing issue of nuisance calls, E-Comm, an emergency communication center in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, re- leased its top ten most absurd 9-1-1 calls. Throughout the year, 9-1-1 operators sub- mitted examples of actual calls they re- ceived which were not true emergencies; here is the list of the most ridiculous calls of 2013: 4. A caller asked a 9-1-1 operator if they could get the “ok” to drive in the HOV (high occupancy vehicle) lane because traffic was backed up and they were late for an important meeting. 3. A caller phoned 9-1-1 to report a missed newspaper delivery. 2. A caller phoned 9-1-1 to get their date’s contact information so they could confirm details of their plans. 1. “I’d like to speak to someone about renting a fire truck to block off a street for a party.” Sadly, it was hard to narrow the list down to just ten. Jody Robertson, E-Comm spokesperson said, “We’re reaching out... to remind the public that 9-1-1 is not an information line, it’s a life line. 9-1-1 call takers cannot answer questions about power outages, when the clocks turn back, or local or international events.” Please use both 9-1-1 and nonemergency lines responsibly. 326()6 2,341(6/32 +43: 33*532 .32+ (9 " # ! $ " % 1(/0 33*532 68)( 34- 888 6-8( 34- % " ! ! "4(*+ !.38 + *7)(6/32 *7 ( /2 380/2- 2 - 7)6/32 34+ ) / " $ " " " " & ! # % " " % " % #!" '