Over the past five years, an additional 130,000 people in the Vitebsk region have gained access to clean water through 98 iron removal stations.
High-quality drinking water is now flowing from taps in Vitebsk and Novopolotsk, Polotsk and Orsha. A similar situation can increasingly be observed in district centers of the Vitebsk region and, encouragingly, in small settlements as well. This has become possible thanks to the "Clean Water" subprogram. During its operation in the region since 2016, the provision of consumers with water supply of normative quality has increased by 11.6 percent and reached 96 percent as of December 1, 2020.
Yuri Yurgel, Head of the Production and Technical Department of the Orsha Vodokanal branch.
— If Orsha is fully provided with high-quality drinking water, there were still many issues in the periphery. The situation has significantly improved in 2019-2020. Villagers felt it immediately, and so did we. From large villages and agro-towns where stations have been installed, there have been fewer inquiries and complaints – which means people are satisfied. We also pay attention to small villages with up to 50 inhabitants. We connect them to the water supply networks of neighboring, larger ones, or install local treatment systems.
Svetlana Kalinkina, head of the water supply network workshop of the Orsha district, joins the conversation. Her voice, as colleagues joke, is known by a large part of the district's residents. The scope of work for the two emergency repair crews supervised by Svetlana Vasilievna is extensive. This includes fixing water pipeline breaks, repairing and thawing hydrants, and, most importantly, ensuring uninterrupted supply of drinking water to consumers. The long distances between villages complicate the work, as a lot of time is spent on travel. But the primary problem lies elsewhere, the interlocutor reasons:
— In my opinion, it is related to the severe wear and tear of water supply networks. Therefore, the main focus of our effortsaem for their replacement — we are removing all steel pipes that have long since exhausted their service life. It is no secret that our number is dialed frequently. Some express heartfelt gratitude, especially if the call is from a village, an agro-town, where iron removal stations have been put into operation (the difference "before and after" is striking!), and some express dissatisfaction. There are enough nuances in our work, but we manage. Fortunately, on the whole, people are understanding about temporary inconvenconveniences.
Vasily Zinkovich, a resident of the agro-town of Krapivno, Orsha district.
The problem of worn-out water supply networks is also relevant for other districts of the region. The main thing is that it is being solved gradually, within our capabilities and resources.
We arrive at the agro-town of Krapivno, where about 760 people live, to assess the operation of the new iron removal station in the Orsha district. On site, we meet Vasily Zinkovich, a physical education teacher, and formerly the chairman of the rural executive committee, who knows firsthand what concerns rural residents. By habit, they still turn to Vasily Petrovich for help in solving pressing problems.
— The quality of water has been the number one topic for many years, — he does not hide. — The iron level was off the charts... Because of this, many did not use tap water to its full extent. They were afraid of harming their health, damaging household appliances. Wells near the Krapivenka River were very popular. The commissioning of the iron removal station at the end of November is an important event for everyone. It was built in a month and a half. I live nearby, so I watched the progress of the work every day. Thanks to the builders for their conscientiousness and efficiency!
Our hero suggests seeing for yourself how much cleaner the H2O has become in the agro-town and invites us for a visit. The hospitable host turns on the tap in the kitchen:
— Look! It's crystal clear, without odor or impurities. You drink and enjoy.
The capacity of the iron removal station in the agro-town of Krapivno allows it to serve local residents, as well as neighbors from the village of Gornoye Krapivno and the settlement of Savishchino, a total of more than 400 people.
— All work is carried out at the expense of the enterprise. Upon application from the rural executive committee, specialists install new rings, periodically clean, repair upper houses, benches, conduct water quality analysis, and carry out prevention and disinfection. Wells managed by enterprises of the housing and communal services system or rural executive committees are serviced according to a similar scheme. If the well is private, it can be done for a fee.
Svetlana Kalinkina, head of the water supply network workshop of the Orsha district.
— This includes investments from the World Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. EBRD resources totaling 15.5 million euros were attracted to implement the pilot investment project "Clean Water of the Vitebsk Region" in the country.
In 2020 alone, the total volume of funding for measures to ensure quality drinking water in the region amounted to 8.9 million rubles. Several projects were completed to loop (reconnect) settlements with water of normative quality, and water supply networks were relaid with a total length of over 96 kilometers. Four more artesian wells appeared in the Vitebsk region. 41 iron removal stations were put into operation, and the construction of three more will be completed by the end of the year. The largest number of new stations, nine, were commissioned in the Orsha district.
Significant work has been done, emphasizes Elena Rashkevich:
— At the same time, important issues requiring increased attention remain. In particular, the problem of water quality needs to be solvedand in 390 rural settlements with a centralized water supply system and a population of 10 to 100 people, where the total iron content in the water exceeds 1.0 mg/l.
At the republic level, the issue of providing villages with a population of less than 100 people with water of normative quality remains relevant, as well as in areas where centralized water supply is absent. In the Vitebsk region, this concerns the Verkhnedvinsk, Vitebsk, Dubrovno, Liozno, Rossony, Senno, Tolochin, Ushachi, and Shumilino districts. Building iron removal plants there is not so much economically as technically impractical. It is more logical to use individual treatment facilities or modular domestic stations (they are installed directly at water intake facilities).
REFERENCE "SG"
In the Vitebsk region, 1184 settlements are covered by centralized water supply. The provision of the urban population is 98.5 percent, rural – 64.6, including in agro-towns – 84.7.
Yuri Yurgel, Head of the Production and Technical Department of the Orsha Vodokanal branch.
The Orsha Example
Over the past two years, 18 iron removal stations have been built in the Orsha region alone under the district development program. Important and long-awaited facilities are now located in Vysokoye and Mitkovshchina, Brazdechina and Pechishche, Zapolye, Pishchalovo, Staiky... On New Year's Eve, the list will be supplemented by a station in Zaslonovka. Isn't that a holiday gift? Yuri Yurgel, head of the production and technical department of the Orsha Vodokanal enterprise (a branch of UP Vitebskoblvodo-kanal), provides details:— If Orsha is fully provided with high-quality drinking water, there were still many issues in the periphery. The situation has significantly improved in 2019-2020. Villagers felt it immediately, and so did we. From large villages and agro-towns where stations have been installed, there have been fewer inquiries and complaints – which means people are satisfied. We also pay attention to small villages with up to 50 inhabitants. We connect them to the water supply networks of neighboring, larger ones, or install local treatment systems.
Svetlana Kalinkina, head of the water supply network workshop of the Orsha district, joins the conversation. Her voice, as colleagues joke, is known by a large part of the district's residents. The scope of work for the two emergency repair crews supervised by Svetlana Vasilievna is extensive. This includes fixing water pipeline breaks, repairing and thawing hydrants, and, most importantly, ensuring uninterrupted supply of drinking water to consumers. The long distances between villages complicate the work, as a lot of time is spent on travel. But the primary problem lies elsewhere, the interlocutor reasons:
— In my opinion, it is related to the severe wear and tear of water supply networks. Therefore, the main focus of our effortsaem for their replacement — we are removing all steel pipes that have long since exhausted their service life. It is no secret that our number is dialed frequently. Some express heartfelt gratitude, especially if the call is from a village, an agro-town, where iron removal stations have been put into operation (the difference "before and after" is striking!), and some express dissatisfaction. There are enough nuances in our work, but we manage. Fortunately, on the whole, people are understanding about temporary inconvenconveniences.
Vasily Zinkovich, a resident of the agro-town of Krapivno, Orsha district.
The problem of worn-out water supply networks is also relevant for other districts of the region. The main thing is that it is being solved gradually, within our capabilities and resources.
We arrive at the agro-town of Krapivno, where about 760 people live, to assess the operation of the new iron removal station in the Orsha district. On site, we meet Vasily Zinkovich, a physical education teacher, and formerly the chairman of the rural executive committee, who knows firsthand what concerns rural residents. By habit, they still turn to Vasily Petrovich for help in solving pressing problems.
— The quality of water has been the number one topic for many years, — he does not hide. — The iron level was off the charts... Because of this, many did not use tap water to its full extent. They were afraid of harming their health, damaging household appliances. Wells near the Krapivenka River were very popular. The commissioning of the iron removal station at the end of November is an important event for everyone. It was built in a month and a half. I live nearby, so I watched the progress of the work every day. Thanks to the builders for their conscientiousness and efficiency!
Our hero suggests seeing for yourself how much cleaner the H2O has become in the agro-town and invites us for a visit. The hospitable host turns on the tap in the kitchen:
— Look! It's crystal clear, without odor or impurities. You drink and enjoy.
The capacity of the iron removal station in the agro-town of Krapivno allows it to serve local residents, as well as neighbors from the village of Gornoye Krapivno and the settlement of Savishchino, a total of more than 400 people.
And what about shaft wells?
Delicious and clean water from the tap is undoubtedly a blessing. But let's not forget about shaft welpublic wells. In the Orsha district, they have been serviced by OrshaVodokanal since 2013. In other districts, they are listed on the balance sheets of housing and communal services, and in some places, rural executive committees. According to Yuri Yurgel, OrshaVodokanal oversees more than 670 shaft wells. The depth of some reaches 30 meters, but mostly 18-20 meters. Separate funding for their repair is not provided, the interlocutor notes:— All work is carried out at the expense of the enterprise. Upon application from the rural executive committee, specialists install new rings, periodically clean, repair upper houses, benches, conduct water quality analysis, and carry out prevention and disinfection. Wells managed by enterprises of the housing and communal services system or rural executive committees are serviced according to a similar scheme. If the well is private, it can be done for a fee.
Svetlana Kalinkina, head of the water supply network workshop of the Orsha district.
There is a pilot project!
Over the past five years, there have been 98 more iron removal stations in the Vitebsk region. Another 130,000 people gained access to clean water. 23.2 million rubles were allocated for these purposes, according to Elena Rashkevich, Deputy General Director of VitebskObkVodokanal:— This includes investments from the World Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. EBRD resources totaling 15.5 million euros were attracted to implement the pilot investment project "Clean Water of the Vitebsk Region" in the country.
In 2020 alone, the total volume of funding for measures to ensure quality drinking water in the region amounted to 8.9 million rubles. Several projects were completed to loop (reconnect) settlements with water of normative quality, and water supply networks were relaid with a total length of over 96 kilometers. Four more artesian wells appeared in the Vitebsk region. 41 iron removal stations were put into operation, and the construction of three more will be completed by the end of the year. The largest number of new stations, nine, were commissioned in the Orsha district.
Significant work has been done, emphasizes Elena Rashkevich:
— At the same time, important issues requiring increased attention remain. In particular, the problem of water quality needs to be solvedand in 390 rural settlements with a centralized water supply system and a population of 10 to 100 people, where the total iron content in the water exceeds 1.0 mg/l.
At the republic level, the issue of providing villages with a population of less than 100 people with water of normative quality remains relevant, as well as in areas where centralized water supply is absent. In the Vitebsk region, this concerns the Verkhnedvinsk, Vitebsk, Dubrovno, Liozno, Rossony, Senno, Tolochin, Ushachi, and Shumilino districts. Building iron removal plants there is not so much economically as technically impractical. It is more logical to use individual treatment facilities or modular domestic stations (they are installed directly at water intake facilities).
REFERENCE "SG"
In the Vitebsk region, 1184 settlements are covered by centralized water supply. The provision of the urban population is 98.5 percent, rural – 64.6, including in agro-towns – 84.7.