From a special cover story on India’s Sanitation Nightmare By Jason Gale in the Bloomberg Magazine

Madam Shantha Sheela Nair, IAS, a legendary IAS officer now retired and holding the position of Deputy Chairman of the Tamilnadu State Planning Commission who as an innovative officer played a major role in the introduction of Rainwater Harvesting Policies and Laws in Tamilnadu and motivated other States as also major lead player in the ECOSAN movement.

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ECOSAN : A WIN-WIN SITUATION !! GTZ poster – Conceptual idea about Ecological sanitation

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Urban Sewage systems involve 10-150 litres of water for flushing. Presuming water supply of a locale is 100-150 MLD, the sewage content would be ~150 MLD.

Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) and Sewage systems are designed with a Self Cleansing Velocity, involving huge quantum of water for propulsion and power supply; thereby ending in polluting the final destination of the sewage – environment hazards…

Recovered water from the STPs hardly recycled for human or any other form of consumption.

Contrary to traditional practices of waste disposal, ECOSAN makes their best use of wastes, in harmony with the environment.

Advantages Over Traditional Sewage Disposal Systems

Water gushing out of underground sewage system

Sewage Treatment Plant

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Family members actively involved in construction of ECOSAN toilets

Inspiration from Rural Areas !!

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E.Coli – Nil

Organic Matter- 20 %

Salmonella- Nil

C: N Ratio – 23:1

Compost from the ECCT !!

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ECOSAN Products - Waste to Wealth !!

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Urine Tank

Dilution Tank

Newly Transplanted Paddy seedlings (one week old)

Urine as liquid fertilizer

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Musiri Town Panchayat is progressive to adopt innovative ideas and concept.

Already introduced DEWATS (Biogas linked toilets). Introduced First ECOSAN Community Compost Toilet in Musiri. 2 ECCTs – 1 exclusively for women, each ECCT with seven cubicles.

Musiri -ECOSAN Community Compost Toilet (ECCT) on Demonstration basis, set up by SCOPE, an NGO based in Trichy

Musiri Adopts ECOSAN …

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ECOSAN Toilets for Tsumani Affected …..

Founded at the 26th Indian Engineering Congress of The Institution of Engineers, India (IEI) works with community level organizations and young engineers in promoting sustainable practices, policy environments, training for green skills and consultancy in creating and sustaining specific interventions in the area of green buildings, sustainable energy and water use and waste management.

TSP’s Collaboration

Full Circle an Example from Bangalore • Full Circle is a registered trust based in Bangalore

• Focus is on sustainable waste management practices

that ensures maximum waste segregation and recovery at source and minimum landfilling.

• In doing the above Full Circle aim to protect the livelihoods of urban poor working with waste.

Key activities • Lobbying & advocacy with BBMP, PCB and other

institutions for better management of the city’s waste.

• Continuous dialogue with recyclers for sustainable recycling of new waste streams

• Participation in city-level awareness building • Workshops and field visits for school children • Daily management of waste within institutions,

apartment complexes and neighbourhoods. • Facilitate creation of self help groups in waste

management.

Market waste being composted at Malleswaram

Managed Vs.Dumped – the impact Prestige Kensington & Wellington Apartments

(250 units) - Dumped

About 5 to 7 tons per month of mixed waste dumped on the highways or in the landfills, costing about Rs.14,000 per month in processing and dumping costs. Emission of Greenhouse gases at 84 tonnes per annum

Prestige Kensington & Wellington Apartments (250

units )- Managed

• 1 to 1.5 tons of dry waste recovered every month for recycling

• About 3.75 of food waste converted to compost every month.

• Impact on greenhouse gases reduced by two-thirds.

• Collection of dry waste at the doorstep, Anandnagar

There are other initiatives like the Centre for Dewats Dissemination Society (CDD) which is a consortium of organizations working sustainable waste and water treatment and Decentralised Solutions And Centre for Advanced Sanitation Solutions (CASS) Survey No. 205, (Opp. Beedi Workers Colony) Bangalore 560 060 – Karnataka, India RnD.unit@cddindia.org, www.cddindia.org

We need to learn from each other support each and create networks of mutual learning, support and solidarity. Technical solutions are available but there are to be based on technology unbundling, training and creating solutions at community and institutional level and which are all primarily social interventions. Scale Diversity and space for innovative local adaptations are necessary and workable. Sustainability solutions are available and are being practiced. The need of the hour is to synergise it and make it general practice not just alternatives. We need to work with mainstream institutions and Conventional engineers working working with out dated large scale and conventional systems for dealing with waste and water. THANK YOU.