The traditional and the most common method----- Nội dung dịch tự động từ ảnh ----- PASSAGE 3- Questions 28-34 Hand-dug Wells ECAVATION BELOW WELL The traditional, and the most common method, of obtaining groundwater in rural areas of the developing world is by means of hand- dug wells. However, because they are dug by hand their use is restricted to suitable types of ground, such as clays, sands, gravels and mised soils where only amall boulders are encountered. Some communities use the skill and knowledge of local well-diggers, but often the excavation is carried out, under supervision, by the villagers themselves. oncete ngs water The volume of the water in the well below the standing water table acts as a reservoir, which meets demands during the day and replenishes itself during periods when there is no abstraction. Depths of hand-dug wells range from shallow wells, about five metres deep, to deep wells over 20 metres deep. Wells with depths of over 30 metres are sometimes constructed to exploit an aquifer that has already been located. It is impractical to excavate a well which is less than a metre in diameter. An excavation of about 1.5 metres in diameter provides adequate working Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS OR A NUMBER from the passage for each answer. space for the diggers and will allow a final internal diameter of about 1.2 28 29 metres once the well has been lined. 30 31 Digging with the sides of the excavation supported There are several methods of supporting the sides of the excavation while digging proceeds. The safest is to excavate within pre-cast 32 33 34 concrete rings which later become the permanent lining to the sides of the well. The first ring has a cutting edge, and additional rings are placed on it as excavation proceeds. As material is excavated within the ring, it sinks progressively under its own weight and that of the rings on top of it. This method should always be used in unstable ground. When construction has been completed, the joints between the rings above |