Your challenge is:

Solving the problem of irrigation

Have succes on your way!

Start

Life seemed to be much less complicated when I was a little boy...

...

...

Hey, Iook at me... I know that you are so concerned about Anna. You don’t eat, don’t talk...

Maybe together we can find out something...

Never stop trying. You are a very smart and kind-hearted boy, I am sure you will be able to help her. What do you think?

The only way to help Anna is to find some clean water so the avocados can grow. Avocados are the cure for her illness.

I don’t understand how the polluted water prevents avocados from growing anyway.

All plants and trees need specific nutrients to grow, which they get from soil, water and air.

Water pollution makes the soil acidic and negatively affects the solubility of nutrient ions, such as iron, magnesium, potassium and calcium ions, thus it prevents them from growing.

Pollution nowadays has got out of hand and it is affecting all living beings including humans, animals, trees...

Give it up, OR...

...collect water?

Well, it sounds pointless to even try then. I don't think my plan of collecting clean water will work...

Giving up before even trying is not a solution. Anna is counting on you and you should always try regardless the result.

Look around, my dear. Your father and me pepare the garden in early spring even though it’s almost impossible to keep any plant alive in these conditions. But some always survives. And we keep trying it year by year.

You are right, I need to do whatever it takes to save her.

I will learn everything about water pollution and its filtering process.

But where can I collect enough water?

Remember the Lake Minor up there at the norhwestern road? It’s quite a hidden and safe place. You can get there by bike in 30 minutes.

But how do you manage to carry the water down here?

I have an idea...

Later...

Mum, Dad, this is my plan for the bike carrier adapter. I can easily carry even 30 liters of water within just one turn.

Oh, he must be
in such a deep love
with that girl...

Bicycle Carrier Adapter

Oh, my little boy,
I’m so proud
of you!

...doing my best, Mum...

The next morning...

Lake Minor

19 km

Help!

Oh boy...

What happened
to you, poor
little fellow...

Let me unwrap you
out of this plastic....

Thank you, young boy. What are you doing here?

I need to help my sick friend by growing avocados, but to do that I need to collect water which I will use filtering methods to clean. But it seems almost impossible to do so with all this trash polluting the water.

Very brave of you to come all this way to help your friend. It seems like you really want to help your friend so maybe it's worth giving it a try.

Give it up...

...OR give a try?

Yes, of course it's worth a try. Tell me more about water pollution. But first let me help you with this garbage.

Thanks a lot.

How did this place end up being so polluted? Also you don't seem to be in a very healthy state...

Well, this used to be the greenest area of this city, but due to the fact that it is a very well-known place, a lot of people leave a lot of trash behind without thinking about nature and wildlife.

... and there are also the soluble chemicals in the water. Look all these trees are dying and I have been feeling sick for some time now as there isn't food around or clean water for me to use. It is my home but it is very difficult for me to live like this.

Pollution is not only affecting us but everything else on planet Earth including humans.

How can we help to keep the water clean?

It is important to clean up your rubbish and reduce plastic consumption! As you can see it's causing major harm. As you can see the area is full of „No littering!” signs though all it takes is to have an extra bag with you to put the rubbish in. Actually, there are volunteering acts where groups of people come here and pick up rubbish. You should try it and you can tell your friends about it.

It sounds like such a simple act, I hope others can understand how important this is. I will definitely volunteer as well. I am sorry that you're going through all of this. I will start filling up the bottles now and start heading home before it is late.

As for the chemicals, they come from polluted air, soil, and from polluted sewage water. I'm afraid you can't stop people polluting the environment, but at least you might be able to purify the water you collect.

Careless people do so many things to poison my world. There are oil leaks, pesticides and herbicides in agriculture, even radioactive waste. I am afraid, all you can do is to purify some water. Even that needs a lot of work. And all these are just a few examples.

I don’t know… I think this is impossible, I will return home and think of something else.

Are you sure you won’t regret?

a

You can boil it.

b

You can use a water purifier.

c

You can use reverse osmosis.

d

You can chlorinate water.

Boiling water

Boiling kills bacteria and viruses, moreover some of the chemicals cease to exist, too.

But you must sieve the water afterwards, to get rid of the impurities.

Purifying water

Water purifier

Electric socket

Purified water

The purifier needs electricity, so it is not a cheap solutuion. It combines the tasks of purifying and filtration through a carbon filter.

But the amount of purified water might be small.

Reverse osmosis

Membrane

Filters in different diametres

Purified water tank

Reverse osmosis forces water through a semipermeable membrane. It does not eliminate the useful nutrients. It might be the best solution for you...

...but it is costly and you will need an expert to build the equipment for you near my lake, for instance.

Chlorinating water

Chlorine

Raw water

Pump

Pressure tank

If you chlorinate water, it kills parasites, bacteria, and viruses, But some organisms are very sensitive to chemicals and changes in their environment, like myself...

...so you must be careful with the amount of chlorine present in the water. If you think we are friends, please, do not chlorinate my waters.

On the way home...

Oh no! What is happening? It seems like we need to take the other road back home. It will take me much longer though...

It is dangerous to stay here or go through the closed road. There is still time before the sun sets so let's just take the other road.

You are right. It’s not like we have many options.

Finally! I was worrying, what happened?

Rocks on the road... We had to take the detour.

Oh, hello little one in the backpack! He might be helping you in your work, right?

Daniel started searching the Internet for possibilities of buying a water filter system.

Filtering water in

3
steps

Chlorinate vs.
purification

10 FACTS
ABOUT
WATER
FILTERING

Reverse
Osmosis
Water Filtering
System

25% OFF
 

Water
purification
DIY

SIMPLY BOILING?
Questions and
answers
 

Pros & Cons
in Chlorinating

4
BEST WAYS

of Water
Filtering

It turns out that a whole lake cannot be purified but the water taken out can, for irrigation.

You should talk to your friends and neighbours, persuade them that clean irrigation water is useful for them, too. If you make a joint effort...

...you might be able to get purified water from the lake. And meanwhile, you might monitor what people do with the water, preventing further pollution.

Persuading people about clean water irrigation, OR...

...recruiting 
volunteers for 
the Lake Watch?

Daniel meets the local people and tries to persuade them to buy a reverse osmosis water filtration system to get purified water for irrigation.

Daniel can be seen talking to various groups of people, some not interested, some supportive, some negative. Supportive people offer money.

Daniel decides to organise a volunteer guard to regularly check what happens near the lake, to stop physical pollution.

LAKE
WATCH

VOLUNTEERS
NEEDED!

Daniel can be seen talking to various groups of people, some not interested, some supportive, some
negative. Supportive people raise hands as volunteers.

I learned so much from you, Turtle! I hope your waters will be much cleaner in the future. Now I feel more confident about growing the avocados, too. Though it might be a long process, I must do what I can.