VOA新闻杂志2024--Kenyans Build Sand Dams to Keep Water

Kenyans Build Sand Dams to Keep Water

　　In southeastern Kenya earlier this year, people from Kasengela village built a special kind of dam. The barrier¹ is called a sand dam. It reduces water flow and increases the amount of wet sand behind it.

　　Sand dams are becoming more common in Kenya and other countries. Local people say the dams save time and labor² because they can get water more easily during dry seasons.

　　Kyalika village in Makueni County³ is where Rhoda Peter and her group built three sand dams along a nearby river.

　　"When I think about sand dams, I feel happy," said Peter, a farmer. "Our shallow⁴ well does not dry. It goes all through the dry seasons."

　　Before they built the dams, she and her children would walk many kilometers to get water. It took them three hours, and they would hurt their feet on rocks.

　　Mwanzia Mutua is the leader of the group who built the Kasengela dam. He said that he used to walk seven kilometers from his home to the Athi River to get water. He spent a whole day on the road. The sand dam will reduce the walk to 10 minutes, he said.

　　"When water is far, you spend all your time looking for it and are unable to do any other work," said the farmer. "Cattle⁵ die because the water is far."

　　How the dams work

　　In Kenya, rain falls only part of the year. Some rivers become dry soon after the rains stop. However, these rivers have a sandy bottom, and the sand can hold water.

　　The dams are made of concrete⁶ and block some of the sand and water. As a result, wet sand builds up behind the dam. This sand can hold enough water for people to use during dry weather. To get the water, they use a hand pump to pull water from the sand.

　　Experts say the dams also help area plants grow and add to groundwater.

　　However, sand dams only work in some areas. A study in Kitui County found that about half of 116 sand dams were not working. The study said the amount of rainfall, and the amount of clay⁷ and rock in the soil are important.

　　"You cannot put a sand dam anywhere," said Keziah Ngugi, a hydrologist and lead writer of the study.

　　Growing numbers

　　Makueni County has nearly 245,000 households. But clean piped water reached only five percent of them in 2022.

　　That is one reason the Makueni County government has been building sand dams with partner organizations and local groups. By 2022, it had built 71, county government records show.

　　The Africa Sand Dam Foundation⁸ (ASDF) helped build the dams in Kyalika and Kasengela. The communities provide sand, rocks and other locally available material, and labor. The British nonprofit uses partners to provide cement⁹ and workers with special skills. After building is complete, the community oversees¹⁰ the sand dam.

　　Since it started in 2010, the nonprofit has helped build 680 sand dams in three counties¹¹.

　　"We've used this model for years, and we've seen its success," said Andrew Musila. He is development director¹² at ASDF.

　　The organization has also worked with governments and other nonprofits in Malawi, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Madagascar, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Somalia and India.

　　The sand dam in Kasengela was completed on March 14, and should be ready to use by December 2025, after it fills with sand.

　　Words in This Story

　　shallow –adj. not deep; not involving a lot of water

　　clay –n. a kind of soil made of very fine particles¹³ that are tightly¹⁴ packed together

　　hydrologist –n. a person who studies water

1 barrier   

n.栅栏，障碍，壁垒，关卡

参考例句：

• You must show your ticket at the barrier.你在关卡处必须出示许可证。
• The driver jumped a horse over a barrier.骑手骑马跳过障碍。

2 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

3 county   

n.县，郡

参考例句：

• When the good news reached there,the whole county rejoiced.喜讯传到那里时，全县的人都欢欣鼓舞起来。
• In that year county after county fell to the enemy.那一年一个又一个的县城沦入敌人手中。

4 shallow   

adj.浅的，肤浅的，浅显易懂的；n.(pl.)浅滩，浅处；v.变浅

参考例句：

• The dish is too shallow to serve soup in.盘子太浅，盛不了汤。
• His analysis was always shallow.他的分析总是很肤浅的。

5 cattle   

n.牛，牲口，畜生

参考例句：

• He has twenty head of cattle on the farm.他在农场养了20头牛。
• On big farms cattle are usually stamped with brands.在大农场，牲畜通常是打烙印的。

6 concrete   

adj.具体的，有形的；n.混凝土 ；v.用混凝土修筑，浇混凝土，凝结

参考例句：

• Could you give us a concrete case?你能不能给我们举个具体事例？
• We should make a concrete analysis of each specific question.对于每个具体问题要进行具体分析。

7 clay   

n.黏土；泥土

参考例句：

• The children like making houses of sticks and clay.孩子们喜欢用树枝或黏土盖房子玩。
• What a love of a clay doll!多么可爱的泥娃娃！

8 foundation   

n.[pl.]地基；基础；基金会；建立，创办

参考例句：

• The foundation of the university took place 600 years ago.这所大学是600年前创办的。
• The Foundation gives money to help artists.那家基金会捐款帮助艺术家。

9 cement   

n.水泥；胶结材料；vt.粘结；巩固

参考例句：

• We need 100 tons of cement at most for this project.这项工程满打满算有一百吨水泥就足够了。
• Let's cement the parts together.咱们来把这些部件粘接在一起吧。

10 oversees   

v.监督，监视( oversee的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• She oversees both the research and the manufacturing departments. 她既监督研究部门又监督生产部门。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Department of Education oversees the federal programs dealing with education. 教育部监管处理教育的联邦程序。 来自互联网

11 counties   

郡，县( county的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The deposits spread for 100 kilometers across four counties. 这些矿藏绵延一百公里，跨越四个县。
• The Jinggang Mountains stand where the boundaries of four counties meet. 井冈山位于四县之交。

12 director   

n.主管，导演；主任；理事；董事；处长

参考例句：

• The director has taken the visitors off to his office.经理把客人带到他办公室去了。
• The new director is easy to get along with.新来的主任很好处。

13 particles   

微粒( particle的名词复数 )； 颗粒； 极少量； 小品词

参考例句：

• These small particles agglomerate together to form larger clusters. 这些颗粒聚结形成较大的团。
• The nucleus of an atom consists of neutrons, protons and other particles. 原子核由中子、质子和其他粒子构成。

14 tightly   

adv.紧紧地，坚固地，牢固地

参考例句：

• My child holds onto my hand tightly while we cross the street.横穿马路时，孩子紧拉着我的手不放。
• The crowd pressed together so tightly that we could hardly breathe.人群挤在一起，我们几乎喘不过气来。