SHINDAND, Afghanistan - Coalition forces and local Afghan villagers worked together to reconnect access to an underground karez that supplies water for over 1000 families in a village just outside of Shindand Air Base in Herat province on March 7, 2011.

The 300-year-old karez, an underground aqueduct, runs through the air base and collapsed after heavy rains flooded the area in February.

U.S. Navy Cmdr. Steve King, deputy commander for the 838th Air Expeditionary Advisory Group at Shindand Air Base, says that the accessibility of Commander’s Emergency Response funds has financed the hiring of Afghans from the village to work on the Karez.

"Through the CERP funds, we were able to hire those villagers to come in and fix the situation," King said. "It was a win-win situation. We were able to get their drinking water and the water for their crops and fields back flowing again, and at the same time being able to offer them work, so the counterinsurgency [COIN] effect is huge."

Afghan workers dig out the dirt with their bare hands. The process isn’t how coalition forces usually do this kind of work but it is the traditional way for Afghans who have been maintaining the karez for generations.

"We would never consider being lowered into a karez hole via a manual wheel where it is actually perfect for this environment and the work that needs to be done," said King.

Safety is a main concern for all involved in the project.

U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Robert Hilker, 838th AEAG fire department assistant chief of operations, heads up the effort to keep everyone involved in the repair project safe.

"Because the operations that are going on are between 25 and 35 feet below the ground, there is a high probability for collapse," Hilker said. "We are on point to provide immediate entry to pull out Afghans in the event of an emergency."

Supplies and safety equipment are also being provided.

"We have provided them with hard hats, flashlights, better rope than they had, D-rings and carabiners, anything that we had that would make what they do safer," said Hilker.

The reconstruction effort and employment of Afghans has had a mutual benefit.

"We are learning as much from them as they are from us." King said. "It has dramatically increased the goodwill amongst ISAF, the Afghan air force and the local villagers."

Connected Media