We often get asked why we use filters over other approaches to providing water, such as drilling wells or building community-wide treatment systems.  First, there’s no single magic bullet.  It’ll take many methods working in concert to solve the global water crisis, and each solves different parts of the equation.  When we studied the global water landscape, the most glaring gap we saw was the safety of water at the point of use. 

Many organizations around the world focus on drilling wells, which provide closer access to water.  This is valuable, but it does nothing to ensure the safety of water by the time it is consumed.  In developing world communities, source water—whether from wells, streams, bore holes, or a central municipal supply—is gathered by families in available containers and brought home for stagnant storage and use.  This process introduces and promotes bacterial growth at every step.  By the time the water is consumed, it’s contaminated.  In addition, wells and central treatment facilities are expensive, single point-of-failure systems that affect entire communities when they invariably break or need parts replaced.  Our decentralized approach—using affordable, durable filters that reside at the point of use—solves both of these problems and ensures that water is safe every time it’s drawn for use.