ASMALL well behind the house of Doy Mulyadi, a resident of Rancaekek in the West Java city of Bandung, is but a gaping hole. The 1-meter wide and 12-meter deep well is filled not with water, but with rubbish buzzing with flies and mosquitoes.

Even if some water seeps out, it is yellowish in color and gives off a foul stench. Thinking his well was not deep enough, Mulyadi dug deeper. Still, little water came out. So he bought and installed a