Ecosan Expert Training Course
Capacity Building for Ecological Sanitation in Bhutan
Ecosan concept - Closing the Loop
Michael Kropac, seecon international, Switzerland
What does sanitation include?
What does sanitation include?
drainage and disposal (re-use, recycling) of
household grey water
management/ recycling of (organic) solid
wastes
treatment and disposal/
drainage of stormwater
E.Menger-Krug
Source: (3)
J.Heeb
recycling
of
collection and management of industrial
waste products
management
of
hazardous wastes,
including
hospital
wastes,
and
chemical/radioactive and other dangerous
substances.
Main Focus of Ecosan
M.Wafler
safe collection, storage, treatment and
recycling of human excreta (faeces and
urine) and sewage effluents
Problems we currently face: No Sanitation…
Sanitation Coverage Bhutan 2006
Improved; 52%
Open
defecation;
12%
Unimproved;
31%
Shared; 5%
Source: Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation (JMP). Progress on Drinking
Water and Sanitation: Special Focus on Sanitation. UNICEF, New York and WHO, Geneva, 2008.
Problems we currently face: Not working Sanitation…
• Users not involved in sanitation
decisions
• Users do not acknowledge importance
of sanitation
• Sanitation not adapted to local
conditions
• No sense of ownership by the people
• No or insufficient maintenance
 Sanitation systems are working
improperly… or not at all
Problems we currently face: Unimproved Sanitation…
• People don’t like using smelly
toilets
• Toilets are not hygienic
• Toilets are a health risk
 Safe and healthy
sanitation not ensured
Problems we currently face: (Ground)-water pollution…
On-site wastewater disposal systems like pit latrines or soak pits
can contaminate groundwater (infiltration of wastewater) when the
groundwater table is high
Source: (4)
 Health risk: Polluted well-water
Problems we currently face: Flush Toilets waste water
With conventional waterborne flush-toilets, we mix
roughly 50 kg of faecal matter (per person/year)
50 kg
roughly 500 l of urine (per person/year)
500 L
with roughly 20’000l of clean flushwater*
© Arun
20’000 L
If this wastewater is discharged
untreated into rivers, an even higher
amount of water is polluted
*Based on the Swiss average for a toilet that uses about 8 L of Water per flush (11).
Problems we currently face: Conventional Waterborne Sanitation
…are “flush and forget” sanitation solutions, where human wastes are
flushed away with huge amounts of scarce freshwater, polluting
rivers and the drinking water of people living further downstream.
What happens at the end of the pipe?
Problems we currently face: Conventional Waterborne Sanitation
What happens at the end of the pipe?
If we are very lucky, there might be a “state of the art” conventional
Sewage Treatment Plant:
Which will need:
• Long sewer network & pumps to get
the wastewater to the plant
• Electricity for aeration, pumps and
other moving parts
• Skilled (and thus expensive) operation
& maintenance staff
• Backup generator for powercuts
• Diesel for generator
 Who will pay for this?
Problems we currently face: Conventional Waterborne Sanitation
Who will pay for this?
Usually nobody!
• Wastewater is moved out of cities
• But worldwide, approx. 90% of the wastewater is not
treated (properly)
• Environment & water sources further downstream are
polluted
 Problem is shifted downstream!
Conventional Sanitation: No Recycling of Water and Nutrients
Water
Nutrients
?
• Nutrient recovery not done or often impossible in cities (due to the
mixing of domestic wastewater with industrial wastewater)
• Huge demand for energy intensive artificial fertilisers, in response to
the problem of decreasing soil fertility. (16)
Alternative, sustainable solutions are needed!
We need to rethink our sanitation approach; a new
philosophy is needed!
Sustainable sanitation solutions :
1. should be eco-friendly (no pollution of ground- and surface water)
2. need to be user-friendly
3. should need low maintenance
4. should be cost effective
5. should produce and not require energy (e.g. biogas)
6. are usually decentralized
7. should reuse nutrients, and water contained in wastewater
P.
K.Jenssen
Conradin
J. Heeb
J. Heeb
K. ConradinK. Conradin
P. Jenssen
Ecological Sanitation as a Sustainable Solution
The basic principle of ecological sanitation
is to close the loop between sanitation and
agriculture without compromising health
FOOD
FOOD
closing the loop
between sanitation
and agriculture
NUTRIENTS
NUTRIENTS
Pathogen
destruction
Source: (4)
Ecological Sanitation as a Sustainable Solution
Ecosan is a new way of thinking
sanitation, not a specific technology!
Ecological Sanitation…
•…regards all (dry and wet) “wastes” as
resources …
•…which can be recovered and safely reused and
recycled after adequate treatment in agriculture.
Closing the Loop: Reuse of Urine and Faeces in Agriculture
Fertilizer Equivalence of Yearly per Capita Excreted
Nutrients and Fertiliser Requirements for Producing
250 kg of Cereals
6
Nutrient (kg)
5
cereal
requirements
4
faeces
3
2
urine
1
0
Source: (33)
N
N
P
P
K
K
faeces
& urine
source: Vinnerås, 2003
N = Nitrogen
P = Phosphorus
K = Potassium
Urine only
none
Closing the Loop: Urine as Fertilizer
Urine is an excellent nitrogen-rich fertilizer!
Sugar cane without urine
Sugar cane with urine
Closing the Loop: Faeces as Compost
Treated faeces give excellent compost that improve the soil
After one week without water...
Benefits of Compost:
Improves soil structure
Improves pore space
Increases water-holding
Better water supply for crops
compost
improved soil
untreated soil
source: Petter Jenssen
Better storage and exchange
capacity for (micro) nutrients
Reservoir of N P K S steadily
released by mineralisation
etc.
!Attention!: There are many disease-causing pathogens
in faeces  proper treatment is necessary!
Closing the Loop: Other Reuse Possibilities
Other Reuse Possibilities:
Biogas as a sustainable energy
source from wastewater:
 For cooking
 For heating
 For lights
 For electricity production
Reuse of water after treatment:
 Irrigation in agriculture
 Industry, flush for toilets
 Recharge of groundwater
Advantages of ecosan Systems: Closing the Loop(s)
Energy
Water
(drinking
water)
Nutrient
Filtration
(membra
ne, sand)
Groundwater
recharge
Greywater
Recreational
water
Biological TreatWatering
garden
ment
Fertilizer
(N, P, K)
Blackwater
Organi
c waste
Aerobic
treatment
(compos
ting)
Anaerobic
treatment
(biogas)
Soil
amendment
Ecological Sanitation: Source Separation is often practiced
substances
treatment
utilisation
urine
(yellowwater)
hygienisation by
storage or
drying
liquid or dry
fertiliser
faeces
(brownwater)
anaerobic digestion,
drying, composting,
mixing with organic
solid waste
biogas,
soil
improvement
Greywater
(showers, washing,
etc.)
rainwater
constructed
wetlands, gardening,
wastewater ponds,
biol.
treatment
filtration,
biol. treatment
irrigation,
groundwater
recharge or
direct reuse
water supply,
groundwater
recharge
Advantages of ecosan Systems
• Improvement of health
• Promotion of recycling
• Conservation of resources
• Preference for modular,
decentralised partial-flow systems
• Contribution to the preservation of
soil fertility
• Improvement of agricultural
productivity and hence contributes to
food security
Source: (18)
• Increasing user comfort/security,
in particular for women and girls
Promotion of a holistic,
interdisciplinary approach.
• Cyclic Material-flow instead of
disposal.
Source: (18)
There is not only one Ecosan Technology…
…many technology components can be used for Ecosan!
Urine-diversion flush toilets
Constructed Wetlands
Toilet-linked Biogas Plants
Urine-diverting
dehydration toilets
Decentralized Wastewater Treatment Systems
…and many more!
Conclusion – Ecological Sanitation Approach
Ecosan is…
J. Heeb
…not a certain
technology
...not only about
waterless toilets
...not only
about
wastewater
treatment…
Conclusion - Ecological Sanitation Approach
Ecosan…
…regards all (dry
and wet) “wastes”
as resources
…is all about reuse,
recovery and
recycling of
nutrients & water
…is a new holistic
way of thinking,
not a specific
technology!
Ecosan Training Course
Capacity Building for Ecological Sanitation in India
Thank you very much for your attention!
Michael Kropac, seecon international, Switzerland
++ References
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(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
(6)
(7)
(8)
(9)
(10)
(11)
(12)
(13)
(14)
(15)
(16)
(17)
(18)
(19)
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