General overview about ecosan

1
General overview about ecosan

• Christine Werner, Heinz-Peter Mang, Florian
  Klingel, Patrick Bracken
• Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische
  Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) GmbH
• ecological sanitation programme, Division 44
  environment and infrastructure

01-03-2005, IESNI 2nd workshop, Pune, India
2
Content

• Introduction to ecosan
• ecosan technologies
• ecosan pilot projects
• GTZ-ecosan programme
• urban ecosan systems

3
shortcomings of conventional watercarriage
sanitation
Introduction to ecosan

• The idea, that human excreta are wastes with no
  useful purpose is a modern misconception. It has
  led to the develop-ment of so-called drop and
  store or flush and forget sanitation
  solutions, where precious drinking water is used
  to transport excreta into the water cycle
  misusing our rivers, oceans and aquifers as a
  sink for untreated waste.

4
shortcomings of conventional watercarriage
sanitation
Introduction to ecosan

• Unsatisfactory purification or uncontrolled
  discharge of more than 90 of wastewater
  worldwide
• Severe water pollution, unbearable health risks
• Consumption of precious water for transport of
  waste
• High investment, energy, operating and
  maintenance costs
• Frequent subsidization of prosperous areas and
  neglect of poorer settlements
• Loss of valuable nutrients and trace elements
  contained in excrements due to discharge into
  waters
• Problems with contaminated sewage sludge in
  combined, central systems
• Linear end-of-pipe technology

5
shortcomings of conventional drop and store
sanitation
Introduction to ecosan
6
excreta are a valuable resource
Introduction to ecosan

• farmers around the world yearly require 135 Mio
  tons of mineral fertiliser for their crops, while
  at the same time conventional sanitation dumps 50
  Mio tons of fertiliser equivalents from so called
  wastewater flows into our water bodies -
  nutrients with a market value of around 15
  Billion US dollars.

7
principles of ecosan
Introduction to ecosan
8
closing the loop between sanitation and
agriculture
Introduction to ecosan
rainwater harvesting
restoring soil fertility
food
agricultural use
organic waste
greywater
faeces
urine
treatment / hygienization
water reuse
no waste disposal in water bodies
9
advantages of ecological sanitation
Introduction to ecosan

• Improvement of health by minimizing the
  introduction of pathogens from human excrements
  into the water cycle
• Promotion of safe, hygienic recovery and use of
  nutrients, organics, trace elements, water and
  energy
• Preservation of soil fertility, Improvement of
  agricultural productivity
• Conservation of resources
• Preference for modular, decentralised
  partial-flow systems for more appropriate,
  cost-efficient solutions
• Promotion of a holistic, interdisciplinary
  approach
• Material flow cycle instead of disposal

10
Introduction to ecosan
eco-sanitation concepts and strategies

• eco-sanitation
• is not a specific technology, but a new
  philosophy - based on an eco-system-oriented view
  of material flows - of dealing with what is
  presently regarded as waste and wastewater for
  disposal
• applies the basic natural principal of closing
  the loop by using modern and safe sanitation and
  reuse technologies
• opens up a wider range of sanitation options
  than those currently considered.
• Human excreta and domestic used water are not
  wastes but are important natural resources!

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ecosan is a cross-sectoral approach
Introduction to ecosan
12
composition of household wastewater
Introduction to ecosan
10.000 200.000 l
50 l
500 l
source Otterpohl
Volume Liter / (Personyear)
greywater urine faeces
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fertilizer potential of human excreta
Introduction to ecosan
source Drangert, 1998
14
Introduction to ecosan
eco-sanitation concepts and strategies

• To optimise cost efficient, high quality
  treatment and recycling options, two principles
  are very often being applied in ecosan systems
• flow streams with different characteristics, such
  as faeces, urine and greywater, are often
  collected separately. Rainwater harvesting and
  the treatment of organic waste and animal manure
  can also be integrated into the concepts.
• the unnecessary dilution of the flow streams is
  avoided, for example by using dry, low flush or
  vacuum transport systems. This minimises the
  consumption of valuable drinking water and
  produces high valued concentrations of
  recyclables.

15
phosphate
Introduction to ecosan
source US Geological survey, 2003

• World demand for phosphate fertilizers continues
  to expand in relation to increased world
  population and food requirements.
• For the period 2003-07, world phosphate
  consumption is forecasted to increase by 2.6
  annually.
• Within about 60 years, all reserved phosphate
  are expected to be mined.
• Future conflicts on the access to phosphate are
  likely, due to the limited reserves and the
  concentration of significant minable resources in
  a very small number of countries.

16
WHO guidelines for agricultural use of treated
water
Introduction to ecosan
17
agricultural utilisation of nutrients
Introduction to ecosan
One person can provide enough nutrients for200
m2 to 400 m2 agricultural production area,
depending on soil and plant type, but

• a multi-barrier concept is recommended for
  securing hygienic safety in the reuse of human
  faeces and urine in agriculture

• Awareness raising and education on hygiene and
  reuse aspects
• Proper pre-treatment (storage, drying,
  composting, anaerobic digestion, heating,
  filtration, irradiation with UV etc.)
• Suitable handling (with security measures)
• Limitation to specific vegetables and field
  crops, or to specific vegetation periods,
  depending on pre-treatment

• the crops nutrient needs have to be respected (no
  over-fertilisation) with respect to crop quality
  and environmental concerns

18
centralised and decentralized systems
Introduction to ecosan
Partially decentralized
Centralized
Fully decentralized
source Larsen, 2001

• centralized sewer system and treatment
• recovery of nutrients and water e.g. through
  reuse of wastewater

• small-scale closed cycles of water and materials

• e.g. separate collection of urine or blackwater
• centralized nutrient processing facility
• centralized greywater sewer system and treatment

19
cost comparison ecosan vs. conventional
Introduction to ecosan
Vacuum urine-diversion toilet
Conventional toilet (WC)
Cost
Composting urine diversion toilet
source Berliner Wasserbetriebe
Time (year)
Projected costs for sanitation service for 5000
inhabitants, Germany
20
benefits of ecological sanitation
Introduction to ecosan

• safe sanitation

• healthy environment

source www.virtualmuseum.ca
source Johannes Heeb
ecosan-toilets in Bangalore, India
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benefits of ecological sanitation
Introduction to ecosan

• improved soil quality through reuse of organics

• restored soil fertility through nutrient reuse

faeces urine
none
urine
source Petter Jenssen
compost improved soil
source Vinnerås, 2003
untreated soil
after one week without water
22
benefits of ecological sanitation
Introduction to ecosan
source Petter Jenssen

• recovery of energy content (covering about 20
  of cooking energy needs for a typical family in a
  developing country)
• energy savings in fertilizer production
  wastewater treatment

• reuse of water

23
overview of ecosan technology-components
ecosan technologies
24
examples of urine diverting toilets
ecosan technologies
China
Dubletten, Sweden
Roediger, Germany
Wost-Man, Sweden
? dry/wet faeces with, urine without flush
? dry/wet faeces without, urine with flush
? wet faeces urine with flush
GTZ, Mali
? waterless faeces and urine without flush
25
waterless urinals
ecosan technologies
vacuum urinal KfW-building, Germany
Lambertsmühle, Germany
Mon Museum, Sweden
Urimat
Ernst
Keramag
26
examples of composting toilets
ecosan technologies
composting toilet, Germany (Berger Biotechnik)
Sweden
27
examples of dehydrating toilets
ecosan technologies
rear view of a dehydrating toilet, Mali
school toilet facility, China
two chamber systems
28
examples of dehydrating toilets
ecosan technologies
various dehydration systems (with and without
urine separation)
Enviroloo-prefabricated system, South Africa
SolaSan-prefabricated system, South Africa
29
vacuum systems
ecosan technologies
elements vacuum toilets, vacuum urinals, vacuum
conductions, pumping station advantages water
saving, concentrated black water collection,
decentralised treatment possible
(anaerobic) manufacturer i.e. Roediger GmbH
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anaerobic treatment with biogas production
ecosan technologies

• small-scale biogas plants
• decentralized treatment of household wastewater
  with or without agricultural waste

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ecosan technologies
large scale biogas plants
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membrane technology
ecosan technologies

• Highly effective removal of soluable and
  biodegradable materials in wastewater stream
• selective permeable membrane (pore sizes lt
  bacteria)
• treated water recycle potential for non-potable
  application
• compact, flexible system

33
earthworm treatment system
ecosan technologies

• example in South Africa

34
aqua culture
ecosan technologies

• wastewater treatment by aquatic plants and fish
  with nutrient recyling by human consumption
• offers high quality protein at low cost
• predominantly in Asian countries
• fish production of 1-6 tons/hayear) achieved

35
fishfarming with wastewater from ducks, poultry
or pigs husbandry (Asia)
ecosan technologies
source Nils de Pauw
36
constructed wetlands
ecosan technologies

• treatment of wastewater or greywater
• effective in the removal of BOD, TSS, pathogen
  and nitrogen
• effluent can be reused
• aesthetically appealing

source Cemagref
vertical flow
source Comax International Ltd.
Niels De Pauw
horizontal flow
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Constructed wetland with biomass production
ecosan technologies
source EU Fair, 2003

• Combined wastewater treatment and bio-fuel
  production from willow plantations (example in
  Sweden)
• Cost and energy effective

38
epuvalisation
ecosan technologies
nutrient recycling (Senegal)
39
urine storage
ecosan technologies
Various containers for urine storage Gebers,
Sweden Lambertsmühle, Germany

40
agricultural use
ecosan technologies
direct injection of liquid fertiliser
irrigation
urban agriculture
dried faeces - soil amelioration)
composting with organic waste
urban agriculture
41
ecosan pilot projects
basic types of ecosan projects
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ecosan pilot projects
eco-settlement Lübeck Flintenbreite, Germany
eco-settlement for 350 people
source Otterwasser GmbH, Germany
43
ecosan pilot projects
eco-settlement Lübeck Flintenbreite, Germany
apartments with greywater treatment and
constructed wetlands vacuum station,
sanitization tank and biogas treatment plant for
the collection and treatment of diluted blackwater
44
ecosan public toilet centre Bangalore, India
(supported by ACTS, SDC, Uni Oslo and GTZ)
ecosan pilot projects

• Public toilet separate collection of urine,
  faeces and anal cleaning water
• Co-composting of faeces with paper

Source Johannes Heeb
Source Johannes Heeb
45
ecosan pilot projects
public toilet centre Bangalore, India (supported
by ACTS, SDC, Uni Oslo and GTZ)
Current collection- transport-, treatment- and
reuse-system
46
New Zealand
ecosan pilot projects
compost toilet (bin)
greywater wasteland
47
biogas-program Dhapasi, Nepal
ecosan pilot projects
biogas is used for cooking, organic sludge is
used to fertilise the garden
toilet wastewater and manure is used in a
household biogas plant
48
ecosan pilot projects
experimental on-site sanitation in Koulikoro,
Mali (supported by GTZ)
experimental on-site sanitation module consisting
of a urine diverting dehydrating latrine, shower
and greywater garden
Urine diverting concrete slab
Greywater garden
49
Egypt (supported by GTZ)
ecosan pilot projects

• large scale field test on soilisation of sewage
  sludge using vegetation (IPP Consult)

Soilisation bed with grass
50
ecosan pilot projects
integrated natural resources management in
Botswana (supported by IUCN, DED, GTZ)

• Introduction of ecosan systems in three
  communities dehydration toilets, urine
  separation and fertilization of gardens with urine

urine diversion toilet made out of plastic
Awareness workshop on a village level
51
ecosan pilot projects
biogas septic tanks Lesotho (supported by GTZ and
DED)

• 1st step (2002) small bore sewer grid for 8
  houses, a biogas-septic tank unit, upflow filter
  based on recycled plastic bottles, wetland, 800m²
  vegetable and fruit garden, two household
  connections for the biogas as full cooking energy
  source
• 2nd step (2003) field tests of black-, greywater
  and urine separation

52
ecosan-study and reuse experiments in Havana,
Cuba (supported by GTZ)
ecosan pilot projects

• Study of options for reuse of urine and faeces in
  existing urban agriculture in Havana

improved soil quality through reuse of organics
53
participatory development of ecosan solutions in
Gibeon and Marienthal, Namibia (supported by GTZ)
ecosan pilot projects

• Information, awareness building, situation and
  stakeholder analysis
• Participatory development of ecosan concepts
• Pilot and demonstration units (fixed and movable
  dehydration toilets with urine diversion)

54
Chinese four in one model
ecosan pilot projects

• pig toilet biogas vegetable
• combined with Greenhouse Production
• more than 1,000,000 times in peri-urban areas of
  Megacities in Northern China
• Use of nutrients, organics, energy and carbon
  dioxyde

55
ecosan dry toilet promotion in Guangxi-Province,
China (supported by SIDA and Unicef)
ecosan pilot projects

• Large ecosan project in the phase of up-scaling
• 1997, pilot project funded by SIDA/Unicef, 70
  ecosan (urine diverting dehydration toilets)
  built in pilot village, Dalu Village
• 1998, 10.000 urine-diverting toilets were built
  in 200 ecosan villages in Guangxi
• 2002, 100.000 ecosan toilets in Guangxi
• 2003, 685.000 ecosan toilets in 17 provinces
  (Ministry of Public Health)
• Factors of success cultural acceptance,
  political commitment, technical flexibility, low
  cost, income generation, pressure from water
  pollution and water scarcity, promotion and
  marketing

Photos Sandec, Text Mi Hua
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urine diverting dry toilets Guangxi-Province,
China
ecosan pilot projects
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urine diverting dry toilets Guangxi-Province,
China
ecosan pilot projects
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examples in Guanxi province, China
ecosan pilot projects
Very remote village No water supply, difficult
transport, biogas plants for manure
Public school
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household biogas latrines
ecosan pilot projects
By 2002 11 million households Data Ministry of
Agriculture
60
decentralized treatment for municipal sewerage
ecosan pilot projects
DEWATS /LOMWATS Decentralized wastewater
treatment systems Low maintenance wastewater
treatment systems
Biogas Digestors By 2002 115.176 plants Data
Ministry of Agriculture
61
ecosan pilot projects
Eco-City, Jiangsu province, China (supported by
GTZ)

• ecosan components to be integrated in the
  Changzhou - Yangzhou Eco-City-Programme
• Baselinestudy completed, feasibility study planned

Model of eco-planned Golden City
Floriculture
62
ecosan pilot projects
KfW office building Palmengarten, Germany

• ecosan concept since 2003
• Greywater recycling
• Rainwater harvesting
• Vacuum wastewater collection

63
ecosan pilot projects
GTZ headquarters, main building, Germany
ecosan concept separation, processing and
agricultural reuse of urine (implementation
2004/2005)
urine diversion toilets and waterless urinals
64
ecosan pilot projects
GTZ supported ecosan pilot projects around the
world
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urban ecosan concepts
Conventional Wastewater System
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urban ecosan concepts
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urban ecosan concepts
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urban ecosan concepts
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urban ecosan concepts
Residential Area
food faeces urine greywater treated
greywater drinking water
70
urban ecosan concepts
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urban ecosan concepts
food faeces urine greywater treated
greywater drinking water
Downtown Area
irrigation of urban green
biogas plant
vacuum sewerage
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urban ecosan concepts