Aquabox founder honoured for blue box invention

Frank Lund and two associates, Geoff Witcom and John MacDonald, are the men behind the revolutionary Aquabox.

The distinctive blue boxes, launched in 1992 with Rotary International, are packed full of humanitarian aid items and sent to victims of human conflict and natural disasters worldwide.

Now Frank has been honoured by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors for his work with the Derbyshire-based project. He has been named among a distinguished list of people who have made a significant contribution to public life in the 150 years which the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors has been in existence.

It was in 1992 that Rotary Wirksworth, based on the edge of the Peak District near Matlock, launched its Aquabox project to despatch purified water to areas of need around the world.

To date, over 110,000 containers have been distributed across the globe to those most in need.”

Frank was the project chairman and the genius behind the design of the Aquabox – once the boxes have been emptied of their contents of valuable aid to assist communities ravaged by disaster, either environmental or man-made, they can be reused for filtering water.

One community-sized filter system can produce an impressive six litres of clean water per minute, which means that over its lifespan the Aquabox can produce a million litres of water.

To date, over 110,000 containers have been distributed across the globe to those most in need.

As a result of his work, Aquabox has helped supply clean water to communities in the Philippines, Cameroon, Malawi, Sierra Leone, Mexico, India, Haiti, Somalia, Peru and, most recently, Syria.

In a citation, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors says: “His outstanding contributions to Rotary International, and society at a large, have not been unrecognised; in both 1998/9 and 2005/6 the Foundation awarded Frank, Geoff and John special honours.

“This ingenuity and commitment to using his skills as a surveyor for the benefit of those in need make Frank a deserved member of the Pride in the Profession celebration.”

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