Water4Omadal
Location
Omadal Island, Sabah
Community
Omadal Island Community
Sponsors
Project Team Members
Member 1
Project Background
Pulau Omadal is home to a Bajau community of around 1500 individuals. However, there is currently neither reliable water supply nor any form of waste management. Residents collect rainwater when possible and supplement this with water bought from Pulau Bum-Bum or Semporna whenever they can afford to. Consequently, the island and surrounding sea area are strewn with rubbish, of which empty water bottles are a significant proportion.
This project has two main goals:
- To enhance water access by increasing rainwater harvesting and filtration treatment capacity,
- To establish a community-run water enterprise that will be able to buy water at cheaper rates as well as remove rubbish from the island.
These twin goals are necessary because it is impossible for rainwater harvesting alone to meet the needs of the population, particularly during the dry season. The project will thus address two key SGP OP6 strategic initiatives:
- Community seascape conservation and biodiversity management,
- Social inclusion (indegenous peoples).
Goals and Objectives
- To simultaneously eliminate single-use plastic drinking water bottles on Pulau Omadal and to improve the waste situation by incorporating it as a central part of the water cooperative’s mission.
- Increasing their rainwater harvesting capacity.
- Installing water filtration technologies to make harvested rainwater potable.
- Launching a community-led water cooperative that will purchase water in bulk in reusable containers on behalf of the community.
