What is Ecological Sanitation or Ecosan?

Short on Ecological Sanitation

Over one billion people lack access to safe drinking water and more than 2.4 billion do not have access to hygienic sanitary facilities. As a result, every year more than three million people die from water-related diseases.

The Millennium Development Goals (MDG) set by UNDP in Johannesburg in 2000 included, under MDG 7, the target: to halve, by 2015, the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and sanitation

Traditionally, the construction of sewerage and wastewater treatment plants has been promoted as the most appropriate system for urban areas with no or poor sanitation facilities.

Conventional sewerage and wastewater treatment systems rely upon a dependable water supply in order to function correctly. In many cities, where there is increasing pressure upon available water resources this can no longer be taken for granted. Hence there are questions as to whether sewerage working in conjunction with wastewater treatment plants remains the most feasible and appropriate sanitation solution.

The main limitations of centralised sewered systems are:

• High construction and maintenance costs
• The absence of a dependable water supply can prevent proper operation of the sewerage system
• The collected sewage has to be treated which adds to the overall cost of the sanitation system sometimes very significantly
• Existing networks in developing countries, primarily serve the rich.
• Most recently, people have begun to recognise that sewerage systems do not allow for the recovery and recycling of valuable nutrients into the food production loop.

There is increasing interest in alternative sanitation options such as ecological sanitation as a means to avoiding the limitations of conventional sanitation systems and contribute to the objectives of sustainable development

Ecological Sanitation is based on the idea that urine, faeces and water are resources in an ecological loop. It is an approach that seeks to protect public health, prevent pollution and at the same time return valuable nutrients and humus to the soil. This recycling of nutrients helps to ensure food security.

In ecological sanitation urine and faeces are separated at source and are not mixed with water. Hence this sanitation solution avoids the contamination of large volumes of water with pathogens. In addition, the separation of urine and faeces make it easier to recover and recycle nutrients such as phosphorous and nitrogen. After dilution and/or processing separated urine can be applied to the soil as a hygienic fertiliser. Faeces, on the other hand, can be safely composted and allows for the integration of organic waste treatment into food production.

Finally, Ecological Sanitation can provide affordable sanitation options for all. It covers a wide range of toilet designs as well as different techniques for the collection and treatment of urine and faeces.

Ecological Sanitation includes low- and high-technology solutions for rural and urban settings. It allows for central and/or decentralised management and can be dry and/or waterborne. This means that appropriate sanitation solutions can be developed for a range of different situations.