Initial Situation

The situation of water in a country has a big influence on social, economic and environmental development. For a long time the international focus has been concentrated on the provision of safe drinking water. But in the last years the problems associated with inadequate or lack of sanitation have risen into awareness. This is reflected in the Millenium Development Goals (MDG) which give a clear commitment to address sanitation with the same priority as water supply.

Inadequate or – even worse – lack of sanitation causes a lot of diseases which are subsequently responsible for low education standards (less school attendance), weakening of labour force, and loss of well-educated and experienced staff through early deaths related to water-borne diseases. A lot of children – especially girls - attend school only sporadically because there are no sufficient sanitary facilities available. Populations suffering from malnutrition are often the same as those that lack adequate water supply and sanitation. Many impoverished people expend significant calories collecting water over great distances or waste them because their bodies are unable to absorb food properly because of diarrhoeal disease.

According to official statistics, in the Philippines 80 % of the urban and 59 % of the rural population have access to improved sanitation facilities. However, it is widely known that the definition of the term ‘improved sanitation’ is not always followed when collecting data. More than 90 % of domestic wastewater is not properly treated and pollutes fresh water as well as marine water resources. Diarrhea is the no. 2 leading cause of morbidity. This has serious impacts on the living conditions of the population, on the quality of natural resources and finally on the economy. The economic losses due to unsafe sanitation and water pollution are estimated at 3 billion PHP avoidable health cost, 17 billion PHP losses in fisheries and 47 billion PHP losses in tourism.

Appropriate Solution Alternative: Urine Diversion Dehydration Toilet (UDDT)

Urine Diversion Dehydration Toilets (UDDT) are an alternative to conventional sanitation. They are based on the holistic approach of Ecological Sanitation (EcoSan) which views human excreta not as waste but as a resource. Ecosan promotes ecologically and economically sustainable sanitation systems that are tailored to the needs of the users and to specific local conditions. Ecosan aims at closing the loop through nutrient recycling.

UDD toilets collect and treat faeces and urine separately. A special bowl is used, for men a urinal can be added. The urine is stored in a plastic can and – diluted with water - can be applied as fertilizer. It is recommended to store the urine for 1 month to ensure pathogen die-off.

The faeces are collected in a vault (substructure). The substructure must be constructed in such a way that there will be no leakages into the soil. It can consist of a single chamber with a mobile container or of 2 chambers. The 2-chamber model functions as collection and treatment unit at the same time. It has the advantage that the second chamber can be used while the faeces in the first chamber are left for storage.

Prolonged storage is used as treatment method to ensure pathogen die-off. The single chamber model is mainly used with a mobile container that needs to be stored for a longer time when it is full. It can be stored in the vault or in an external storage space. Alternatively the faeces can be collected in separate plastic barrels which are placed in the chambers. To enhance the treatment process the faeces should be covered with ash or lime. It can also be covered with dry sand or saw dust to prevent bad odour. The vault needs to be well ventilated.

The average storage time is 12 months (depending on amount and climate). Within this time pathogens (bacteria, viruses, certain helminthes) are eliminated. The treated material can be directly used as a fertilizer and soil conditioner. Another option is to compost the dried faeces together with other biodegradable waste and use the compost for agriculture.

An essential step in introducing UDD toilets is social preparation of all stakeholders. Sustainability will only be achieved if the future users of the UDDT and of the treated excreta fully understand and accept the ecosan concept. Also, the handling is easy to learn, a sound training is indispensable. Therefore several interventions have to be conducted to ensure stakeholder participation right from the start. These interventions should include an orientation about the EcoSan philosophy, technical, social and health aspects as well as the safe re-use. It is highly recommended to set up user groups for information exchange and mutual support in operating the facilities.

Advantages

A UDD toilet does not need valuable drinking water to flush away excreta. Therefore the demand for clean water is significantly reduced. This recommends the system especially for areas with scarce water resources.

Because the different materials have different characteristics, a separate collection makes it easier to treat them according to their specific reuse requirements. Recovered material from human excreta is predominantly used in agriculture; urine as fertilizer and faeces as organic matter for soil improvement. This can be done for example in allotment gardens. In this way additional income can be created through the selling either of fertilizer or cultivated vegetables.

Example City of Bayawan, Oriental Negros:

The City of Bayawan is located in the southwest of the Province of Oriental Negros (Visayas) and is composed of 28 barangays. It has a total land area of approx. 70,000 hectares, more of 80 % are defined as rural.

Within their Healthy City Program 2 pilot UDD toilets have been build in coastal barangays which are operating since the beginning of 2006. The units were completely financed by the municipality.

Replication in the rural hinterland with scattered population has started. 40 UDD toilets will be constructed on a cost-sharing basis. The municipality will finance the substructure (collection chamber, bowl, pipes) of their surplus fund, and the future users respectively the barangays will pay for the super structure. 25 units have been completed by mid of 2007.

The average cost for 1 UDD toilet is about 15,000 Peso (material and labor).

The GTZ Water and Sanitation Program has been supporting the project with technical assistance in planning, design, construction, and monitoring. Capacity development of the local ecosan team is integral part of the technical assistance.

Further dissemination of the technology is foreseen. Meanwhile, many interested LGUs visited the UDD toilets in Bayawan and got first-hand information from the users and the ecosan team of Bayawan City.