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Consolidated Reply
Query: Low cost and ecologically sound sanitation practices/ from IWMI Anand/ Comparative Experiences
Compiled
by
Original Query: Dinesh Kumar,
International Water Management Institute (IWMI), Anand,
Posted:
I am Dinesh Kumar working at the
International Water Management Institute (IWMI) in Anand,
I find that sanitation in rural
In this regard, my query is:
What are the low cost and ecologically sound sanitation practices that are used or recommended in urban and rural areas? What have been your experiences in adopting these methods and technologies?
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Responses received with thanks from:
1. D Chandrasekharam, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Mumbai
2. Sara Ahmed, Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Ahmedabad
3.
A K SenGupta, WHO,
4. Nafisa Barot, Utthan, Ahmedabad
5.
AJ James, Pragmatix
6.
Sudarshan Iyengar, Centre for Social Studies,
7. Avani Mohan Singh, Haritika, Sangli
8.
Ruchita Khurana,
Toxics Link,
9.
A K Paikaray, Mahavir Yuvak Sangh,
10. Suvojit Chattopadhyay, Gram Vikas, Berhampur, Orissa
11.
Sharadbala Joshi,
*Offline contribution
Further contributions are welcome!
___________________________________________________________________________
Summary of Responses
This query seeking low cost and ecologically sound practices particularly gains relevance in the context of the specific MDG target set for the provision of water supply and sanitation services, to halve the proportion of people without access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation by 2015. In response, select ecological sanitation models have been identified by members' responses and additional literature.
Ecological sanitation (also called “ecosan”) is a cycle, or closed-loop system, which treats human excreta as a resource. Excreta are processed on site until they are free of pathogenic (disease-causing) organisms keeping the eco cycle in the sanitation process closed. It is also a low energy approach using natural processes. It entails the advantages of being economic and flexible. In addition it 1) eliminates large quantities of black water; 2) self selects the poor; 3) saves domestic water consumption; 4) enables recycling of minerals; 5) facilitates energy production from organic waste water resources and 6) also creates local business opportunities. Key features of ecological sanitation, therefore, are prevention of pollution and disease caused by human excreta, management of human urine and faeces as resources rather than as waste, recovery and recycling of nutrients, and cost effectiveness of the systems. Members' contributions highlight the following ecological sanitation systems in practice:
· Systems in Urban and Rural Areas
o Slum networking approach: Sewers are provided in slums where
communities pay for individual household connections and are connected to
city-wide infrastructure network. In higher density urban areas, this option
reduces possibilities of ground saturation and contamination; and reduces
maintenance costs at the household level. An effective structure of tenural rights needs to be in place and serves as an
essential prerequisite for the proper functioning of this system. Examples
include initiatives in
o Sulabh Sanitation Method: Low cost, pour flush, water-seal toilet with twin leach pits for on site disposal of human waste. Advantages include affordability, low use of water and the usage of locally available material. Additionally the toilet can never be out of commission as there are twin pits.
· Wastewater Treatment Systems
o Root Zone Treatment System: is artificially prepared wetlands
comprising of clay or plastic lined excavation and emergent vegetation growing
on gravel/sand mixtures. Facilitates treatment of domestic
wastewater especially for small towns, villages making it easily possible &
affordable with low investment requirements. It is being used in Auroville,
o Duckweed Based Wastewater Treatment System - The duckweed based stabilization pond functions as anaerobic pond except at the top layer where aerobic condition prevails, which hence effectively controls the odour problems of the pond. The capability of up taking nutrients from wastewater attributes this plant to be a biological purifier. This low costing technique is suitable for developing countries as it facilitates resource recovery and environmental protection.
These methods fall under broad contexts in rural and urban areas that have been sourced from additional literature.
· Dehydrating systems: In these systems, urine is directed away from faeces to keep the processing chamber dry, volume of material small, and possibly use urine as a fertilizer. Popular examples are:
- A
Double Vault Dehydrating Toilet, initiated in
- A
double vault toilet similar to the Vietnamese one has been adapted in
coastal regions of
·
Composting: In a composting toilet human
wastes are deposited in a processing chamber along with organic household,
garden refuse and bulking agents. After sufficient retention time the partly
decomposed material is moved for secondary processing. These toilets range from
small to larger units, and are used in
·
Soil Composting – In this system, soil is added at
every level of defaecation in a chamber often with
wood ash. It includes shallow pit or raised processing chamber. Soil composting
sanitation systems have been predominately used in Ladakh,
and in
A variety of such systems and other indigenous technologies are low cost and ecologically sound thus contributing significantly towards achieving the objectives of ecological sanitation. The available technologies and a comparison of experiences and practices are provided in greater detail below.
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Comparative Experiences
Systems in Rural Areas
Orissa, (from Sara Ahmed, IIM, Ahmedabad)
Gram Vikas is involved in the water and sanitation programme in Orissa wherein the communities bear about 30% of the capital costs, leverage about 50% from the government and Gram Vikas contributes the remaining. The government contribution through the Swajaldhara drinking water supply programme is for establishment of rural piped water supply. Community efforts are also made to tap the local area development funds from local elected representatives. Gram Vikas provides on an average Rs.4,000 per family for construction of toilets and bathing rooms, which is considered as ‘social cost’ which meets the cost of externally sourced materials including cement, steel, toilet pan, etc.
Uttar Pradesh (from Avani Mohan Singh, Haritika, Sangli)
Under the Swajal Project, few models in sanitation and provision of drinking water have been developed in the districts of UP to overcome the common problem of open defecation. Particularly in the Bundelkhand region where the soil strata is rocky, low cost twin pit pour flush model of latrines costing around Rs. 3000 have been promoted. Further soak pits, compost pits and CC road with drain for the safe disposal of used water has also been provided.
Khurda District, Orissa (from A.K. Paikaray, Mahavir Yuvak Sangh, Bhuvaneshwar)
Under the Total Sanitation Campaign, all schools in Khurda District were selected under the district water and sanitation mission headed by the zilla parishad president. Twenty-one school toilet complexes have been built in Begunia Block in five grampanchayats. Individual household latrines have also been promoted. The hindrance faced, however, is the acute water shortage faced in the summer months.
Systems in Urban Areas
The Department for International Development (DFID) provided significant support for the Slum Networking Project implemented by the Indore Development Authority. The project provided a framework for the integrated upgrading of the entire city within which the slum areas are viewed not as individual settlements but as an urban network. The project also provided for the development of infrastructure thus not just benefiting 4,50,000 slum dwellers but also the entire city. For further information see, Problems or Opportunities - Towards a better quality of urban life
From Preeti Soni, Resource Person
Pune,
A partnership between the municipal government, NGOs and community-based organisations has built more than 400 community toilet blocks greatly improving sanitation for more than half a million people. They have also demonstrated the potential of municipal community partnerships to improve conditions for low-income groups. For further information and other interventions undertaken in the field of sanitation see SPARC below.
Ahmedabad,
Another example of the Slum Networking Project is the ongoing Parivartan Project, which brings infrastructure services including water and sanitation in an affordable and sustainable way to the slums and Chawls of the city. This project is led by the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) motivating communities, NGOs and private sector to work in partnership. Its success has resulted in the participation of more slums in the project. For more information, see Ahmedabad Parivartan below
From Ramya Gopalan, Research Associate
A public ecosan
toilet block in a slum area in
The double vault toilet redesigned by Paul Calvert, EcoSolutions has been adapted here and is replicated in Chennai, Tamil Nadu and SriLanka. Given the coastal context and high water tables this dry above ground toilet has been successful especially because hygiene education and regular follow up.
Experiences in the adoption of soil composting technique in dry highland rural regions of Ladakh recommend that it is possible to process human excreta indoors without prior diversion of urine, by using a combination of soil composting and dehydration. During winters soil is piled into a corner available as required. Problems have emerged only recently in the central part of Leh due to the difficulty for households in having access to soil.
Waste Water Treatment Systems
Auroville,
Horizontal planted filters, also called constructed wetlands or root zone treatment systems have been developed for recycling domestic wastewater from small individual households, communities and small industrial units producing effluent with similar characteristics to domestic wastewater. At present, Auroville operates nearly forty treatment systems for recycling domestic wastewater under their decentralized wastewater treatment systems.
Kolkata,
The Kolkata Wetlands use wastewater both in agriculture and in aquaculture covering an area of about 12,000 ha, known as the Waste Recycling Region. Wastewater-fed aquaculture systems like the Kolkata Wetlands represent controllable public health risks.
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Related Resources
Recommended Organizations
Sulabh International,
http://www.sulabhtoiletmuseum.org/profile.htm
The organization founded by Dr. Bindeshwas Pathak has innovated and promoted a low cost solution to success by the sulabh sanitation method.
Safai Vidyalaya (The Environmental Sanitation Institute), Ahmedabad (from Sara Ahmed, IIM A, Gujarat; A K Sengupta, WHO, New Delhi and Sudarshan Iyengar, Centre for Social Studies, Surat)
Tel: 27557702, 27556247
The
organization has several examples of low cost ecological sanitation models
promoted through the "
From Sara Ahmed, IIM, Ahmedabad
Water and Sanitation Management Organisation (WASMO), Gandhinagar
http://www.wasmo.org/eng/swajaldhara.htm
Main facilitating organization for the Swajaldhara program, also responsible for fund disbursement under the Total Sanitation Campaign
Utthan, Ahmedabad
http://www.utthangujarat.org/i3.htm
Utthan development action planning team promotes loans for sanitation through women SHGs (San - Banks) in an effort to promote health and sanitation
Gram
Vikas, Orissa
Gramvikas is a rural development organization promotes rural sanitation and environmental health covering villages in largely poor, adivasi areas with users contributing to partial costs.
Pravah,
Ahmedabad
pravah@rediffmail.com;
pravah@icenet.net
Pravah is working on various options to sanitise the urban slums of Ahmedabad with partner NGOs
Water Supply and Sanitation
Collaborative Council (WSSCC),
This organization through its WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) campaign aims to enable 15 million people reach basic sanitation by 2015 in accordance with the MDGs.
Friends
of Women's World Banking
FWWB was set up in an effort to enable poor women to access financial resources required for business activities. Evidence indicates women accessing low interest loans for sanitation.
WASTE,
An NGO in the
Society for the Promotion of Area
Resource Centres
(SPARC),
Works for development in urban slums including provision of adequate sanitation facilities.
EcoSolutions-India,
The organization seeks to design, demonstrate and promote ecological sanitation on the Indian subcontinent since 1994
Recommended Contacts
From Sara Ahmed, IIM (A), Ahmedabad
Joe Mediath, Gram Vikas, Orissa
Recommended as a source for further information on Gram Vikas's initiation to promte rural sanitation and environmental health
Nafisa Barot,
Recommended for more information on the WASH campaign to be launched by WSSCC
Ishwarbhai Patel, Environmental Sanitation Institute (Safai Vidyalaya), Ahmedabad (from Sara Ahmed, IIM A, Gujarat; A K Sengupta, WHO, New Delhi and Sudarshan Iyengar, Centre for Social Studies, Surat)
Pioneer of Safai Vidyalaya, recommended for their considerable experience in the field of environmental sanitation
Sandeep, Hunnar Shala,
Suggested particularly for the eco sanitation model using less water and solid matter as a fertiliser
From AJ James, Pragmatix India, Gurgaon
Madhab
Nayak, Fountain of Development Research
and Action (FODRA),
Recommended for more information on
the joint working of WASTE and FODRA on eco-sanitation projects in different
parts of
Paul Deverill, WES - UNICEF,
For more information on eco-san toilets promoted by WES - UNICEF (e.g., in Alwar, Rajastan)
Mark Ellery, WSP - South Asia, New Delhi and C.Ajith Kumar, WSP - South Asia, New Delhi
mellery@worldbank.org ckumar1@worldbank.org
Recommended contacts for information on several interesting indigenous technologies being applied in rural Maharashtra
Dr. Kamala
Choudhury, Vikram Sarabhai Foundation (from Ruchita Khurana, ToxicsLink,
Suggested for expertise in the subject of rural sanitation issues.
Recommended Websites
Ecological
Sanitation at WASTE (from AJ James, Pragmatix
Ecological Sanitation site at WASTE, a Dutch NGO. provides information on the various aspects important for the success of ecological sanitation.
Ecological Sanitation Links (From Ramya Gopalan, Research Associate)
http://www.thewaterpage.com/ecosan_links.htm
This section of the Water Page provides ecological sanitation web links to organizations, publications and resource centers
Recommended Documentation
Scaling
Up Rural Sanitation in
Water and Sanitation Program (WSP) Report, May 2004, available at,
http://www.wsp.org/publications/SANITATION STUDY_PRESS.pdf (size: 1.07 MB)
The publication cites good case studies from developing countries on sanitation programs reported by WSP - an international partnership for improving the water and sanitation sector
Gram Vikas' Intervention in Water and Sanitation (from Suvojit Chattopadhyay, Gram Vikas, Berhampur, Orissa)
http://www.solutionexchange-un.net.in/environment/cr/res27090501.doc
A short concept note regarding the approach towards water and sanitation adopted by Gram Vikas
From Preeti Soni, Resource Person
The Soozhal Initiative: A Model for Achieving Total Sanitation in Low-Income Rural Areas
S. Ramesh Sakthivel and Roger Fitzgerald (2004), Water For All Publication Series, ADB, available at
http://www.adb.org/Documents/Books/Water_for_All_Series/Water_Poverty_Realities/Soozhal.pdf (size: 34 KB)
This Case Study sets out the experience of a rural sanitation program initiated by Soozhal network in part of the Cuddalore district, Tamil Nadu
http://www.citiesalliance.org/citiesalliancehomepage.nsf/Attachments/Cities+Without+Slums+Action+Plan+-+Annex/$File/annex.pdf (size: 249 KB)
Summary of a current example of Scaling - Up Slum Upgrading, providing the action plan and the way forward for the Parivartan Project in Ahmedabad
Further documentation identified by Ramya Gopalan, Research Associate
Problems or Opportunities Towards a better quality of urban life
http://envfor.nic.in/divisions/ic/wssd/doc3/chapter13/css/Chapter13.htm
Showcases the Slum Networking Project,
Waste Water Recycling
The Auroville,
http://www.auroville.org/research/water_recycle.htm
Provides details on the adoption of root zone treatment system for the recycling of waste water under the Decentralised Wastewater Systems
Root Zone Treatment System
Central Pollution Control Board,
http://www.cpcb.nic.in/pciiiihandbook.htm
The Central Pollution Control Board provides a handbook on the application and assessment of Root Zone Treatment System
Duckweed Based Wastewater Treatment System
http://www.cpcb.nic.in/r&d-cpcb/ch7-20603.htm
The Central Pollution Control Board provides information on the application and assessment of Duckweed Based Waste Water Treatment System
Ecological Sanitation
Anton Earle, October 2001
http://www.thewaterpage.com/ecosan_main.htm
This document of The Water Page, an independent initiative
with emphasis on
Ecological Sanitation and Reuse of Water-ecosan-A Think piece on Ecological Sanitation
Jensenn, P.D. et al (2004), The Agricultural University of Norway
http://www.dep.no/filarkiv/204575/ecosan_thinkpiece_final3.pdf (size: 871 KB)
This paper is a "think piece" showing that there are comprehensive experiences and technologies that meet new and sustainable sanitation requirements in developing countries
Ecological Sanitation - Revised and Enlarged Edition
Winblad
U & Simpson-Hébert M (editors) (2004), Stockholm
Environment Institute,
http://www.ecosanres.org/PDF%20files/Ecological%20Sanitation%202004.pdf (size: 1.24 MB) Pdf format
This book discusses sanitation for the future, describing available technologies and experiences across the world and further highlighting the challenges faced and benefits perceived
Low-Cost Urban Sanitation
Mara, D
(1996), John Wiley and Sons,
This book covers the public health, technical, socio- economic, socio-cultural and institutional aspects of sanitation in towns in developing countries.
Related Past Consolidated Replies
Consolidated Reply: Cost-effective & financially sustainable urban water supply & sanitation services/from IWMI, Gujarat/Comparative Experiences
http://www.solutionexchange-un.net.in/environment/cr/cr-se-wes-16060501.doc
It provides examples, experiences and additional readings in the context of cost-effective and financially sustainable approaches for provision of urban water supply and sanitation services
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Responses in Full
D Chandrasekharam, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Mumbai
Perhaps the best way is to adopt Sulabh Sanitation (Sulabh Shauchalaya) method initiated by Dr Bindeshwas Pathak.
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Sara Ahmed, Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Ahmedabad
Sorry, I should have got back to you after the NGI seminar
with this information but anyway it's good to see you using SE-WES! As far as
rural Gujarat goes, then Shri Ishwarbhai
Patel at Safai Vidyalaya is
the best to contact: safai@icenet.net Tel. 27557702, 27556247 (The
Environmental Sanitation Institute, Gandhi Ashram, Ahmedabad
380 027). They have several examples of eco-sanitation, but I don't think have
worked in
WASMO, as the main facilitating organisation for the Swajaldhara program, is also responsible for fund disbursement under the Total Sanitation Campaign if I am not mistaken - there should be a district level office for Patan which you could contact.
Some NGOs, e.g. Utthan, are also
promoting loans for sanitation through women's SHGs
(San-Banks) but its too early to say how repayment is
proceeding (utthan@icenet.net). Pravah is working on
sanitation in urban slums of Ahmedabad with partner
NGOs so you may want to look at the options they are promoting. There's also a
report Pravah has done on urban community sanitation
alternatives - a rapid assessment of slums in Ahmedabad
looking at pay-and-use toilets, the Slum Networking project, etc. (
Of course one of the best NGO initiatives in promoting
rural sanitation and environmental health is Gram Vikas,
Orissa - they've really been able to cover complete
villages in predominantly poor, adivasi areas and got
users to contribute to partial costs (the rest is subsidy and loans). You can
get in touch with Joe Mediath at: info@gramvikas.org
and see if they have literature they can send you. There's also the Rama Krishna Mission's work at Midnapore,
Finally, the Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative
Council (WSSCC,
I hope that this is useful and you can follow up with the organisations listed.
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A K Sengupta, WHO,
Since you are in
_______________________________________________________________________
Nafisa Barot, Utthan, Ahmedabad
We have been working on sanitation issues in the rural areas as well as have some experience in collective irrigation managed by a group of very poor women in Dahod area.
For the query of Dinesh kumar, I would suggest you could look at eco sanitation, where in use of water is very less and the solid matter used as fertiliser. Sandeep from Hunnar Shala in Kutchch could provide you with more information.
Our women in Bhavanagar and Rajula are accessing low interest loans for sanitation from Friends of Women's World Banking.
_______________________________________________________________________
AJ James, Pragmatix India, Gurgaon
In response
to your query, I would like to mention the work of an NGO in the Netherlands
called WASTE (www.waste.nl), which has been doing precisely
this kind of documentation of ecosan practices in
different parts of the world. They have been working on eco-san projects in
different parts of
The WES section of UNICEF India has also been promoting eco-san toilets (e.g., in Alwar, Rajasthan), and perhaps Paul Deverill (pdeverill@unicef.org) may be able to point you in the right direction as far as documentation is concerned.
There are also several interesting indigenous techniques being applied in rural Maharashtra, recently documented by the Water and Sanitation Program – South Asia), about which Mark Ellery (mellery@worldbank.org) or C. Ajith Kumar (ckumar1@worldbank.org) may be able to give you more information.
_______________________________________________________________________
Sudarshan Iyengar, Centre for Social Studies,
I am hope you are addressing this to a larger audience.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Avani Mohan Singh, Haritika, Sangli
We were working with UP.Rural
water supply and environmental sanitation project (Swajal)
project in
Here in Bundelkhand region of UP and MP the soil strata is rocky. That is why we have promoted low cost twin pit pour flush model of latrines cost around Rs.3000 of latrine.Also providing soak pit,compost pit and CC road with drain for safe disposal used water.
Our one of the village have 100 sanitation cover having free from open defecation.
_________________________________________________________________________
Ruchita Khurana, ToxicsLink,
I have come across a recent report by The
water and Sanitation Program titled "Scaling up Rural sanitation in
Also I would suggest you to contact Dr. Kamala Choudhry from Vikaram Sarabhai Foundation. Dr. Choudhry is extremely knowledgeable on the subject of rural sanitation issues.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Ashok Paikaray, Mahavir
Yubak Sangh,
We have a success story on TOTAL SANITATION CAMPAIGN in Begunia, a block in Khurda district in Orissa. People of this block are used to reliving themselves in the open. They go to fields, meadows, the sides of roads to answer the call of nature. In the process they pollute the air and defile the water of the pond as they consider so sacred. No wonder, they suffer.
Children emulate the elders. The students of the local schools go to the fields to relieve themselves. All their knowledge about health and hygienic remains confined to books. Of course, they know they should change their habits. But in practice they do nothing of the sort. No facilities were available. But what was worse was the lack of will to change things. It is no easy tasking to changes the attitude of people, attitude formed over generations. These were also being reinforced in the school.
Not that every family in the village is poor and lacks in the means to construct a house hold latrine. The fact is for villages are not a priority. It does not occur to them that by defecating in the open, they are actually inviting serious health hazards. However a change took place. The district water and sanitation mission headed by zilla parishad president Sri Prasanta Kumar Jagdev the mission selected all the schools in Khurda district for covering under total sanitation campaign. A toilet unit consisting of two urinals, one for boys and the other for girls, and a latrine was constructed at a cost of twenty thousand rupees. It was not difficult on the part of the school to contribute 10% of the total cost amounting to two thousand rupees. The construction of a toilet complex became a reality. Mahavir Yubak Sangh (MYS) a NGO in Orissa come forward to support this campaign. Till date we have completed 21 school toilet complexes in Begunia Block in five gramapanchyats. For the students of the school things have now changed to attend the call of nature. This has given a sense of dignity to them.
Promotion of individual household latrines is the primary focus of the project and this will be done through a demand driven approach.
Another achievement by the NGO was that till date we have constructed about 1148 individual household latrines for the BPL famines in those panchyats namely Sarua, Baghamari, Begunia,Radhakantapur and Govindapur of Begunia block in Khurda distict. The massive campaign is possible only because of the involvement of president zilla parishad SJ. Jagdev and the PRI members in the block.
There are several hindrances to move this total sanitation campaign as there is acute water problem during summer. In each flush one member has to use two bucket of water. So sanitation is incomplete without water.
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Suvojit Chattopadhyay, Gram Vikas, Berhampur, Orissa
Gram Vikas has been working on water and sanitation for over a decade now, among the poorest rural communities in Orissa. We have found that even among the poorest of communities, it is not low-cost that matters; it is more an issue of cost-effectiveness. This implies a premium on quality, being absolutely uncompromising on standards of construction and institutional mechanisms that need to be put in place. I am attaching a short concept note on our approach to water and sanitation - and how, in a state as poor as Orissa, this model has succesfully proven itself over and over again, in fact, 211 times
http://www.solutionexchange-un.net.in/environment/cr/res27090501.doc
Hope you find it interesting. Do get back to us with your comments and suggestions. We would be happy to share with you further details regarding our programme if you wish.
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Many thanks to all who contributed to this query!
If you have further information to share on this topic, please send it to Solution Exchange for WES-Net at se-wes@solutionexchange-un.net with the subject heading “Re: [se-wes] Query: Low cost and ecologically sound sanitation practices, from IWMI Anand / Comparative experiences”.
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