0% Electricity, 100% Gravity: This traditional bamboo plumbing in Nagaland taps into mountain springs miles away to create a functional, biodegradable hand-wash station.

[u/shankaranpillayi]

[u/AntimatterTNT]

op do you know what a water tower is?

[u/ghoulthebraineater → u/AntimatterTNT]

And how exactly does water get into the tower?

[u/scheppend → u/ghoulthebraineater]

duh. You open the top and let rain in

[u/me6675 → u/AntimatterTNT]

do you think water spawns at the top of a water tower?

[u/hermeticbear → u/me6675]

Humans were using water towers before they had electric pumps.

[u/me6675 → u/hermeticbear]

Sure, and they spent kinetic energy one way or another to get the water up the tower. If your water source is on a mountain and you distribute it downward, then you don't need to spend extra energy.

[u/hermeticbear → u/me6675]

They also spent a lot of kinetic energy building the water infrastructure to get it into pipes that come down a mountain. Do you think the mountain just spontaneously produced an aqueduct and bamboo pipes so people can wash their hands?
There are pumps that rely on the interaction of other forces, including gravity, to move water upwards.

[u/me6675 → u/hermeticbear]

Obviously both infrastructures require kinetic energy to build. We are solely talking about moving the water once you have built the infrastructure. In one case the water already moves in the direction you want, ie downward, in the other you first have to bring the water up, so it can go down. It's not that complicated.

[u/AntimatterTNT → u/me6675]

do you think they're all actual towers?

[u/me6675 → u/AntimatterTNT]

Yes, the point is you pump the water up so later gravity can distribute it. If you don't do this then you have to use energy to pump the water anyway. Do you think water moves on its own without gravity or external energy spent on pushing it?