Where do we get our water from?

Hi Classes 1 and 2, it sometimes seems funny that we are living on an island surrounded by water but we need to think about where we get our water for living from. Of course we are surrounded by the sea which is salt water and no good for drinking or washing. Luckily living on an island in a tropical climate, means it rains a lot more than back in Britain, and this we rely on.

We collect our drinking water off the roof of our house and store it in six big barrels. Before we do this, we need to make sure the roof is clean and all the bird pooh and leaves has been washed off. We can then drink and use this water for cooking, after it has been through a simple filter.

However it doesn’t rain all the time and so we need to make sure that we have stored enough during the two rainy seasons, and that we don’t waste our drinking supplies.

For all washing; ourselves, dishes and clothes, we have a well. The water from the well is slightly salty, which is no good for drinking but ok for washing. The well is 5metres deep and we use a bucket on a piece of rope to reach the water. The rope has knots in it so that we can grip it well and pull the bucket up when it is full and heavy. This water we then carry to our house in our own buckets, where we use it, we haven’t got a shower, sink or washing machine, so everything is washed by hand.

Not having a permanent supply of water or running water out of a tap and having too carry it from a well, really makes us think about how much water we use and encourages us to economical with every drop. This is important when living on an island to ensure that we don’t run out before it rains again.