A new venture for the nonprofit group, Engineers Without Borders, finds volunteers helping out on American Indian reservations. Its University of Wisconsin-Madison chapter is currently helping the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa with some infrastructure issues.
"They just opened a new cemetery, and they're trying to get some drainage for that land," explains Alison Sanders, a project co-manager.
"Pretty much the entire reservation has a very high groundwater table -- we're told it's approximately four feet down ... so any homes that are built with basements or places like a cemetery where you have to dig down fill with water pretty quickly."
Sanders says they're developing a cemetery drain design for groundwater, as well as a similar project for older homes on the reservation that get hit with recurring floods every year. She adds the UW-Madison chapter of Engineers Without Borders will work with Red Cliff tribal officials for at least five years, a commitment tribal planner Tim Funk appreciates.
"It's a special challenge in Indian Country to maintain that stuff in good condition, because federal budgets are so tight," explains Funk.
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"The ability of the tribes to levy, to maintain and improve that infrastructure is very limited. I mean, these are challenged communities and so to keep everything functioning and keep everybody healthy and safe, it's hard," he said.
Alison Sanders says Engineers Without Borders launched this initiative after critics said there were communities within the U.S. that deserved services. Besides gaining good engineering experience, Sanders says the cultural exchange between the students and the Red Cliff people has also been invaluable.
