Key Issues

1. Management of waste water (gray, black and septage); solid waste; storm water and rainwater
2. Sanitation can have negative impacts of water supply, ground water and surface water
3. Rwanda case study:

Wastewater: no wastewater treatment plant in Rwanda; people are encouraged to collect wastewater in a pit in the houses but this falls apart in rainy seasons. Decentralized systems are in place for specific settlements, hotels, hospitals and so on, but the effluent quality remains the problem. A centralized wastewater treatment plant is being designed for soon being implemented.

Solid waste: mostly open dumpsite; no separation at source; lack of appropriate technology.

Storm water: direct discharge to rivers and swamps; no appropriate technologies

Proposed Recommendations

1. Policies are available but implementation is still a challenge
2. Encourage institutions coordination and stakeholder involvement
3. Enhance implementation processes at different levels:

Small-scale level:

1. Support new toilet designs
2. Encourage good WASH behavior
3. Rainwater harvest
4. Encourage decentralized waste water treatment plants (WWTP) systems before sending into public canals
5. Use appropriate technologies for emptying, transporting, treating and reuse

Large-scale level

1. Ensure construction of sanitation systems in new settlements
2. Support new toilet designs
3. Store and re-use of reclaimed water
4. Implement separate storm water systems and reclaimed water to avoid need for large treatment plants
5. Storm water management via green vegetation; pervious roads; retention basins etc.
6. Encourage urban agriculture
7. Separate waste at the source: recycle for re-use purpose.
8. Involve women at all levels through education training, research and development and decision-making at both small and large scales.

Discussion

1. Role of ecosystems in sanitation, ecosystems clean the waste; what is the role of effluent in ecosystems; natural wetlands and man-made wetlands can scrub the waste from wastewater. This can be done on small scale at village level.
2. Example cited of involvement of youth in garbage collection to ensure separation of different types of waste
3. Socialization of communities on the different wastewater treatment
4. Paying for ecosystem services: Semi-treated wastewater can be sent into rivers and plants and animals can be used to scrub nutrients/clean waste from the water.
5. Plants in man-made wetlands can be harvested for use in thatching/fencing but not for animal fodder e.g., water hyacinth, dark wheat.
6. Think of sanitation as a business (e.g., energy production; production of re-useable products e.g., plants for building materials)