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In southeastern Kenya earlier this year, people from Kasengela village built a special kind of dam.
今年早些时候，肯尼亚东南部卡森盖拉（Kasengela）村的人们建造了一种特殊的水坝。
The barrier is called a sand dam.
这种水坝被称为沙坝。
It reduces water flow and increases the amount of wet sand behind it.
它可以减少水流，增加沙坝后面的湿沙。
Sand dams are becoming more common in Kenya and other countries.
沙坝在肯尼亚和其他国家越来越常见。
Local people say the dams save time and labor because they can get water more easily during dry seasons.
当地人说，这些水坝帮助节省了时间和劳动力，因为在旱季他们可以更方便地取水。
Kyalika village in Makueni County is where Rhoda Peter and her group built three sand dams along a nearby river.
在马库埃尼郡的卡亚里卡（Kyalika） 村，罗达·彼得（Rhoda Peter）和她的团队沿着附近的一条河流修建了三座沙坝。
"When I think about sand dams, I feel happy," said Peter, a farmer.
“一想到沙坝，我就高兴”，农民彼得说。
"Our shallow well does not dry. It goes all through the dry seasons."
“我们浅井不会干涸。旱季也不会。”
Before they built the dams, she and her children would walk many kilometers to get water.
在修建水坝之前，她和孩子们要步行好几公里才能取到水。
It took them three hours, and they would hurt their feet on rocks.
他们要花三个小时取水，脚还会被石头硌伤。
Mwanzia Mutua is the leader of the group who built the Kasengela dam.
姆万齐亚·穆图阿（Mwanzia Mutua）是建造卡森盖拉沙坝小组的组长。
He said that he used to walk seven kilometers from his home to the Athi River to get water.
他说，以前他要从家里步行七公里到阿西河取水。
He spent a whole day on the road.
他在路上要花一整天的时间。
The sand dam will reduce the walk to 10 minutes, he said.
他说，沙坝建成后，取水的步行时间将缩短至 10 分钟。
"When water is far, you spend all your time looking for it and are unable to do any other work," said the farmer.
这位农民说：“因为取水很远，你会把所有时间都花在找水上，无法做任何其他的工作。”
"Cattle die because the water is far."
“因为水太远了，牛死了”
In Kenya, rain falls only part of the year.
在肯尼亚，一年中只有部分时间下雨。
Some rivers become dry soon after the rains stop.
雨停后，一些河流很快就会干涸。
However, these rivers have a sandy bottom, and the sand can hold water.
然而，这些河流的河底都是沙子，而沙子可以蓄水。
The dams are made of concrete and block some of the sand and water.
沙坝由混凝土构成，阻挡了部分沙子和水。
As a result, wet sand builds up behind the dam.
因此，湿沙在水坝后面堆积起来。
This sand can hold enough water for people to use during dry weather.
这些沙子可以储存足够的水，供人们在干旱天气使用。
To get the water, they use a hand pump to pull water from the sand.
为了取水，人们用手泵从湿沙中抽水。
Experts say the dams also help area plants grow and add to groundwater.
专家说，沙坝还有助于当地植物的生长，并增加地下水。
However, sand dams only work in some areas.
然而，沙坝只在某些地区起作用。
A study in Kitui County found that about half of 116 sand dams were not working.
在基图伊郡的一项研究发现，116 个沙坝中约有一半未发挥作用。
The study said the amount of rainfall, and the amount of clay and rock in the soil are important.
该研究指出，降雨量以及土壤中粘土和石头的含量非常重要。
"You cannot put a sand dam anywhere," said Keziah Ngugi, a hydrologist and lead writer of the study.
研究报告的主要撰写人、水文学家凯齐亚·恩古吉（Keziah Ngugi）说：“你不可能把沙坝建在任何地方。”
Makueni County has nearly 245,000 households.
马库埃尼郡有近24.5万户家庭。
But clean piped water reached only five percent of them in 2022.
但在2022年，只有 5% 的家庭用上了干净的自来水。
That is one reason the Makueni County government has been building sand dams with partner organizations and local groups.
这也是马库埃尼郡政府与合作组织和当地团体一起修建沙坝的原因之一。
By 2022, it had built 71, county government records show.
郡政府的记录显示，到 2022 年，该郡已建成 71 座沙坝。
The Africa Sand Dam Foundation (ASDF) helped build the dams in Kyalika and Kasengela.
非洲沙坝基金会（ASDF）帮助卡亚里卡村和卡森盖拉村修建了沙坝。
The communities provide sand, rocks and other locally available material, and labor.
这些社区提供沙子、石头和其他当地可用的材料以及劳动力。
The British nonprofit uses partners to provide cement and workers with special skills.
这家英国非营利组织利用合作伙伴提供水泥和具有特殊技能的工人。
After building is complete, the community oversees the sand dam.
建设完成后，社区对沙坝进行监管。
Since it started in 2010, the nonprofit has helped build 680 sand dams in three counties.
自 2010 年成立以来，该非营利组织已在三个郡帮助修建了 680 座沙坝。
"We've used this model for years, and we've seen its success," said Andrew Musila.
安德鲁·穆西拉（Andrew Musila）说：“我们使用这种模式已有多年，我们看到了它的成功。”
He is development director at ASDF.
他是非洲沙坝基金会的发展总监。
The organization has also worked with governments and other nonprofits in Malawi, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Madagascar, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Somalia and India.
该组织还与马拉维、津巴布韦、莫桑比克、马达加斯加、斯威士兰、埃塞俄比亚、坦桑尼亚、索马里和印度的政府和其他非营利组织合作。
The sand dam in Kasengela was completed on March 14, and should be ready to use by December 2025, after it fills with sand.
卡森盖拉村的沙坝已于 3 月 14 日完工，在填满沙子后应可于 2025 年 12 月投入使用。
I'm Andrew Smith.
安德鲁·史密斯为您播报。
译文为可可英语翻译，未经授权请勿转载！
