- ~1 billion people worldwide drink untreated surface water
- 2 million of this population (mostly children <5 yrs old) die from disease caused by contaminated water.
- Moringa oleifera is a vegetable tree commonly grown in the developing world.
- "One of the world's most useful trees"
- Drought resistant
- Provides oil for cooking & lighting
- Soil fertilizer
- Pods, leaves, seeds, & flowers are edible and highly nutritious
- *Simple, low-cost, natural water treatment uses seeds from the tree*
- Reduces water-borne bacteria by 90-99%
- Reduces water turbidity (cloudiness due to suspended debris) by 80-99.5%
- The most significant part of this is not the purification technique itself, but the public access granted by the researchers at Clearinghouse. http://www.currentprotocols.com/protocol/mc01g02
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/03/100303082804.htm
