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Millions
of deaths every year are attributable to the lack of sanitation services
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“And
it’s time for change,” said the Chairperson of the Water Supply and
Sanitation Council, Sir Richard Jolly, recently commenting on the disease,
drudgery, loss of human dignity and millions of deaths every year attributable
to the lack of sanitation services, especially among the poor, while the world
stands by as 6000 people die every day in a worldwide silent emergency.
Despite
sustained efforts both by the government and civil society in Sri Lanka,
sanitation is still a loser with regards to island-wide coverage of sanitary
facilities. 14 percent of the population has no sanitary toilets and only 38
percent have water seal latrines in their homes.
Sri
Lankans Go Eco
Against
this background, the new concept of human waste management, ‘eco
sanitation’, is proving popular, especially in some of the water scarce and
water logged areas of the country. The concept is simple and is aimed at a low
cost, easily maintained toilet that also has the added bonus of saving large
amounts of water used in flushing toilets. The human waste matter is composted
into fertilizer, thereby producing a useful byproduct with very little effort
and at no cost.
“Ecological
sanitation is a sustainable closed-loop system, which is a practical, hygienic
and cost-effective solution to human waste disposal,” says Paul Calvert,
Director of the international agency, Eco Solutions, who introduced the concept
to Sri Lanka. Enthused by over a decade’s hands on experience in South Asia
and Africa, and having pioneered its use in several parts of South India,
Calvert is hopeful of this concept becoming popular in Sri Lanka in the next
five years.
With
the prognosis for water becoming more fearsome every day, the Sri Lankan
government agency, the National Water Supply and Sanitation Board, has
successfully completed a number of eco sanitation pilot projects in three
districts, Colombo, Matara and Kalutara.
The
trials have proved to be efficient and environmentally friendly. The
infrastructure is cheap and the concept contributes to health and safety. The
only snag is the people’s aversion to human waste and this has been overcome
by a series of awareness programmes.
“The
people realize the value of saving water and the fact that compost for their
home gardens is automatically produced at no cost, there is no smell and the
toilet provides privacy are all factors towards the people’s acceptance,”
says SDS Jayawardene of the Water Board.
Safe,
Clean and Suitable for Dry Regions
Ecological
sanitation differs from most applications of conventional sanitation that in
many situations discharge pathogens (tiny agents that cause diseases in humans)
and nutrients into groundwater, rivers, water bodies and the sea. Eco sanitation
sanitizes human excreta and makes it safe by killing the pathogens it may
contain, prevents contamination of water bodies, minimizes water use and, most
importantly, conserves precious water for more useful and urgent uses as
drinking and cooking. The system also recycles the valuable plant nutrients
contained in human excreta.
Calvert
says that while the system has wide applicability, practical application has
shown that it is especially suited for water logged or water scarce areas and in
situations where there are impermeable strata, such as rock, at the surface.
“This
system has been successful in parts of Europe, the United States, Australia and
Scandinavia and is becoming popular in areas where anti pollution laws are
strictly observed and where water bills are high,” adds Calvert
Dr.
Udani Mendis, the engineer in charge of the Water Board project, explains how
the system works.
“The
urine and the water used to wash after defecating flow directly along a pipe to
plants beds located outside the toilet. The urine contains valuable plant
nutrients. Fuel wood, banana, coconut, vegetables and flowers thrive on this
nutrient.
“Using
urine to nourish plants is common among many rural people growing vegetables and
fruits. In the eco toilet it is diverted directly to the plants,” she adds.
“The
solid part of human excreta (minus the urine) is the smallest part. In the eco
sanitation system this matter is contained in a pair of small chambers beneath
the toilet where its volume is reduced by dehydration and decomposition and the
pathogens are destroyed.
“The
toilet is located outside the house and the chambers into which the fecal matter
drops is under the superstructure, above the ground. One chamber only is used
and when that is full (after about a year) the chamber is emptied through a
small opening on the side of the chamber and the opening is then closed. During
this operation the second chamber is used. As the resultant material is dry, an
average family can use the toilet for a year or even one and a half years before
it is ready to be opened. It is inoffensive in appearance and has no smell as
the chamber is lined with dry straw and every time it is used, the user covers
the excreta with a canful of wood ash mixed with lime and sawdust kept there for
the purpose,” explains Dr. Mendis.
Preferable
Even to the Flush Toilet
Nandawathi
was one of the first to try out this new toilet. Nandawathi’s house had a
flush toilet. But each year the family was faced with the problem of its tank
overflowing during the seasonal rains. Within two weeks of completing their dry
eco toilet the family had demolished their flush toilet and are now completely
at home with the new technology.
Is
Nandawathi growing anything with the compost?
Yes,”
she smiles, “ chilies…but we will only use them after drying, not fresh!”
Sarojini,
like many women in her neighborhood, could not really believe that the new
toilet would not smell. But now, after some months of use, she is convinced that
there is no smell. In her suburb of Ratmalana her house is on low-lying land,
with a problem of storm water drainage when septic tanks and toilets simply back
up and overflow. Sarojini is now
spared all of that, with her spanking new eco toilet!
*Vijita
Fernando is a freelance Sri Lankan journalist with more than 25 years of
experience. She is a member of the Sri Lanka Federation of University Women,
Chairperson of the Centre for Family Services, which works with women and
children victimized in local conflicts and is a Board Member of a consortium of
NGOs working in water and sanitation in poor rural communities. Your emails will
be forwarded to her by contacting the editor at: ScienceTech@islam-online.net
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