PROJECT SPOTLIGHT: Sustainable Harvest

"New England EnviroStrategies was a pivotal partner in our success on the Gombe Coffee Promotion Project, an international development initiative based in Tanzania. They not only solved the critical problem of delivering water for coffee processing, but also developed water delivery solutions to improve the livelihoods of 3,000 coffee farmers. In short, New England EnviroStrategies exceeded all our expectations."

Libby Evans
Farmer Development Programs Manager
Sustainable Harvest Coffee Importers Opportunity
Sustainable Harvest, a specialty coffee importer dedicated to improving global coffee supply chain practices, is helping coffee farmers in the Kigoma region of Tanzania to increase their standard of living. One area of focus for the organization is advancing the coffee processing infrastructure and procedures to give coffee cooperatives the technology and know-how to produce higher quality coffee, which can be sold at specialty market prices.

How We Helped
Sustainable Harvest turned to New England EnviroStrategies to identify local water resources to develop into a consistent supply of water for centralized, water-efficient coffee pulping and washing operations. Demonstrating our commitment to global service, we subsidized a member of our staff to travel to Tanzania for the purpose of:

• Visiting 18 proposed washing station locations
• Discussing site conditions and possible water sources with local leaders
• Performing reconnaissance-level hydrogeologic evaluations of the likelihood of obtaining sufficient water to operate a pulping machine and wash processed coffee, and
• Obtaining estimates of elevations and distances from potential sources of water to proposed washing station locations.

Results
After the site visits, New England EnviroStrategies developed a comprehensive report for Sustainable Harvest recommending the most appropriate washing station locations and water supply options based on hydrogeologic and cost issues.

We also provided:

• A preliminary conceptual design of the site-specific water system, including the approximate elevation drop and length of piping required, and nature of catchment structure
• A suggested water supply conveyance option for each site (gravity flow versus manual or gas-powered pump)
• Preliminary cost estimates for both initial construction and ongoing operation for obtaining water.

Although outside the scope of the project, we noted potential water quality issues and other factors Sustainable Harvest needed to consider when deciding on washing station locations. These factors included ease of obtaining title of the targeted land and water sources, potential road infrastructure issues, and proper pulp and wash water disposal techniques.

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