bunutan clean water project

This is the Bali that the tourist sees.  These are the photos on all the travel brochures. Awesome mountains, gorgeous sunsets, beautiful rice fields, pastoral scenes, temples galore, offerings, and families praying together.  And the spices, food, and fruit.  A  tourist can eat well even in the smallest of warungs.

But in the north east of Bali it is a bit different. 

the Bunutan area (yellow marker, inland) has nothing like the plentiful water of western and central Bali, pictured above

The spark plug behind this whole effort is this man, Ketut “Ping” Suadarna, from Desa Culik.  He has worked for the last 14 years at Hidden Paradise.   He is a gardener, pool man, and driver. 

He rode his motor bike to the Universitas Maha Saraswati in Amlapura 3 or 4 nights a week.  If you have ever been along the very steep and winding road from Amed to Amlapura, you can see what a commitment this is.  He studied English so he can teach people in the Village so they can get jobs in the tourist hotels.

His graduation ceremony was in September 2008 in Nusa Dua.

It is he, who I first asked the question some 4 years ago, “Why doesn’t someone do something?”  It is he, who has arranged all of the meetings with the leadership of the hamlets.  It is he who has organized all the trips to the top.

meeting with community leaders in Bunutan

I like to ask the Kelians and the Kepala Dusuns (village leaders) if government officials have ever been up here.  The answer is always the same. Politicians and government officials seem to have more important things to do.

Members of the Water Projects Committee of Rotary Club of Bali, Ubud have completed their feasibility and due diligence work.  Rotarians David Seligman, Kadek Arie, Mr. Chu, and Don Bennet were in the group that traveled to Amed last October. 

We have climbed and looked at several of the potential sites.  Flow rates at the sources were checked in October at the height of the dry season.  The question arises, “Why hasn’t someone done this already?” 

It is a very poor area.  The politicians talk endlessly about the water problem in Karangesem.  But these areas are extremely difficult to get to.  There are no roads, nor bike paths to these hamlets.  It took us more than 7  hours to climb to Br.Guliten and back.  It is about a 5 ½ hours round trip to Br. Canguang and a little less than that to Br. Batukesine.

Each time I climb to one of these villages, my legs howl in protest and I say to myself that I really don’t want to climb up here again.  But then I do.

Funding has been received.  Construction began in October 2008.

Ron , Richard, 6 Rotaractors and 70 people from the village were carrying the building material jointly to the first project site! Congratulations for achievements. (several kilometres uphill, on foot!)

from Richard Foss

Since the last report we have opened up the project in Batukesini.  So we are progressing in all three villages.

Rtn.Ron Dixon (Canadian) and 3 Rotaractors sharing what's left of their water. Man in red shirt is village chief of Batukesini

The climbs are taking a toll on some of us. (mainly the old guys)

Ron Dixon and two Rotaractors went to Guliten.  It was Ron’s first climb there - it is the 7 hour ordeal.

 Ron survived and reported much progress in Gulinten.

The man is a contractor.  He is scheduling deliveries of materiel with two Rotaractors.

Again, I cannot say enough about the Rotaractors.  They talk about the Rotary Club of Bali Ubud’s 5 way test. The fifth one:  “Is it fun?”

They are amazing. You don't have to understand the Basa Bali language to see their infectious enthusiasm spread to the village people. You can see it in the faces of the people. 

Planning session with Rotaractors in the hotel.

With some villagers in Canguang.

One completed base for the plastic tanks in Canguang

Kaler, President of Rotaract at the top of Canguang

a completed tank platform

Status UPDATE detail 2 December 2008:

Ron Dixon and I and 6 Rotaractors left at a little after 0500 in the morning for the climb to the project sites. 

Made Lesoh and Yani climbed to Gulinten.  Progress is slow but steady.  The expensive PE pipe is in place and most of the concrete is at the top.

Ron, Arcana and Pica climbed to Batukesini and reported that construction has started on the 5x4x2 ½ meter bak at the top. Made, the manager of Wawa Wewi Restaurant had promised to donate 5 sacks of cement and some pipe for the project, but we did not find him this trip. 

Wayan, Kaler, and I climbed to Canguang which is our “problem child”.  They have made good progress on the first of three projects in that village.  The school (System I) has always been a high priority. 

But we found that they had strung the expensive PE pipe the entire way for the first project.  This is the special pipe to be used in landslide areas and over high cliffs.  It costs about double the less expensive AW pipe. 

Our problem was to determine if they should take up this pipe and move it.  The problem would be that it would have to be cut in a number of places and the connections are very expensive.  Not to mention the delay and labor in re-siting the pipe (it took about a week to lay).  We decided to let it stay and postpone system III in that village.  Our budget is a bit slim and it just got slimmer. 

A tank begins its journey to the top

This is the cap to one of the springs

Two villagers at one of the springs

Coffee, Tea, roast peanuts and pineapple

We did a thorough job of siting the tanks for project II in Canguang. We were guided by the tukang (building supervisor).  Very nice fellow.  He was 15 years old when he married his 11 year old bride.  We met their 7 year old son when we stopped hat his house to have coffee and fresh roasted peanuts and a pineapple.

Normally we have paid cash for our supplies but today we made our first wire transfer of funds to the construction shop, Toko Suka, in Bunutan.  The technology leap frog from no electricity and no phones to bank transfers and instant hand phone communication in just a few years is incredible.

Again I cannot say enough about the Rotaractors.  They are amazing. 

An older attempt to bring water down the mountain