A Hawaiian company has developed machines that can extract fresh water directly from the air. According to KHON2 news in Honolulu, two of these machines have been deployed and are now ready to distribute water to those in need.
The machines, which can generate over 200 gallons of water a day using only the humidity in the air, were developed by Waiea Water, a sustainable water company. The Hawaii Emergency Management Agency recently purchased two machines for less than $250,000 each to have on hand in case of an emergency.
"We can survive a few days without power, we can't survive without water," HIEMA Administrator James Barros said. "In an event that we get hit by a natural disaster or extended power outage or anything that could happen, we've got to ensure that we have clean water flowing."
Each machine would be part of a hub set up in the event of an emergency, designed to provide extra support, not replace all sources of water.
According to science.org, over 4 billion people globally are impacted by the lack of access to potable water, and that number could increase by billions more due to the overheating of the planet. Since the year 2,000, per the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, about 40% of global land has experienced an increase in the average number of droughts as well as the intensity.
Desalination is one process of providing clean water, but, although there have been some incredible breakthroughs, in many cases, the process can be energy-intensive and contribute to the very reason the planet is warming.
Waiea CEO Anton Smith believes the machines his company developed can be put to use even when it's not an emergency.
"Waiea is a Hawaiian word that means water from air," Smith said. "We have a resource to use that we can tap into … We have so many people that don't have access to clean drinking water, which you would think would be a bit of a right. So here's a much cleaner way to do that."
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