Saniti – Sanitation transformed towards dignity for all
A strategic rethink is required for building greater water security in the future, such as utilising instead of flushing away human waste
The Covid-19 pandemic has underlined the importance of access to safe, hygienic water and sanitation services towards population health and wellbeing. While a significant number of South Africa’s households have access to safe sanitation, reaching those who still lack adequate access requires new and innovative solutions.
Leading this “brown revolution” in South Africa is the Water Research Commission (WRC) under the banner of the Sanitation Transformation Initiative (Saniti). This approach aims to disrupt the current sanitation paradigm by presenting a new pathway and a national strategic direction for the South African sanitation industry, allowing various partners and stakeholders to break away from the current binary paradigm to a more dignified and water secure paradigm. The Saniti initiative was one of the main foci of discussion of the recent 5th WRC Symposium, which was held virtually from 20 to 22 September 2021 under the theme Re-imagine, Re-build and Repeat: Future Proofing Water.
Previous apartheid spatial geography planning meant that large proportions of the South African population did not receive adequate potable water and sanitation provision. Full waterborne systems were scarce in these areas. With the advent of South Africa’s new democracy in 1994, the government focus shifted to the provision of access to basic water supply and sanitation services for unserved citizens.
While much progress has been made in the last two decades in tackling the huge inherited backlogs, the current urban migration trends along with population growth has meant that municipalities have to deliver sanitation services under challenging planning scenarios. This is especially so in growing informal settlements without formalised housing arrangements, and in government-subsidised housing areas where there is an ever-increasing backlog.
For the former, it is technically challenging to provide sanitation services to individual homes within an informal housing arrangement. The laying of sewers in unplanned housing sites limits the municipalities’ technical approach. Temporary options in the form of onsite solutions such as chemical toilets can be provided but are expensive to implement, while latrine technologies may require frequent emptying cycles in areas not conducive to such a task.
While servicing these challenges, responses become even more complicated when dealing with issues of climate change, growing dry spells, increased droughts and shortages of water in the near future. Innovative thought is required for building greater water security in the future. One of the low-hanging fruits is sanitation. For too long human waste has been flushed away using large amounts of water (nearly 50% of household consumption). While it has brought significant health benefits, it has also created a growing complex pollutant to be managed downstream. Human waste is a valuable resource; it is full of nutrients, energy and useful chemicals, and if approached as such warrants a disruption to the sanitation environment.
The Saniti approach to sanitation service delivery points to a strategic re-think of how sanitation is provided; a change to a systems approach in which all aspects of sanitation are interrelated and interdependent that requires the adoption of new business models, such as circular economy and market entry and marketbased research as part of its approach.
Symposium delegates heard how the Saniti strategy incorporates elements of behavioural change, industrial development, policy development for new sanitation, technology standards and regulations, technology testbeds, research, development and innovation (RDI) focused on supporting the strategy and sanitation academy, which will build the next cohort of skill and artisans required to service this new frontier. The outcome will result in:
New sanitation that meets user needs and expectations while demanding less of natural resources. The new sanitation must be replicable on a large scale and the components easily sourced throughout the supply chain.
Circular economy principles in which products in the value chain are recycled or reused with the addition of other revenue streams.
Establishing market needs and demands. Presenting a RDI pathway to achieve technical, policy and procurement targets in line with the vision.
Creating a sanitation manufacturing industry around the technical advancements and creating several new jobs and employment around this.
The WRC will support transforming the sanitation environment through four programmes that are aligned to the vision of Saniti:
1. Re-engineered Toilets – The scope of this programme includes the development of innovative toilet options that combine the benefits of flush systems and dry sanitation systems while eliminating their limitations (reducing flush volumes, eliminating pathogens and sludge production, non-requirement for laying of sewers, appealing to users). Solutions developed must take into account circular economy principles as part of their design and operation, including the recycling of water and nutrients, energy-saving/ generation and capability to generate
by-products of commercial value. Sanitation Sensitive Design – The development of institutional and municipal financial, planning, management, social and communication models that align to the objectives of Saniti is required for this new form of service delivery to achieve critical mass. The focus of this programme is therefore the development, testing and evaluation of these models to ensure sustainability of approach. This programme addresses institutional and municipal sustainable service provision through incorporation of “sanitation as a business” approaches; creating enabling environments for new sanitation models; training, education and awareness aspects that contribute to sanitation sensitive design; and improved city-wide hygiene behaviours and health indicators.
Municipal Sludge Valorisation – Municipal wastewater sludge and faecal sludge from non-sewered systems are technically challenging to deal with. There is a need for cost-effective solutions to deal with them. The scope of this programme is to promote the development of appropriate and cost-effective techniques for municipal and faecal sludge treatment and/or valorisation. The focus of this programme is on RDI that optimises current treatment options and future valorisation-focused systems. Sanitation-linked Business (SANIBUS) – The scope of this programme includes the development, inclusion, application
and evaluation of business approaches as part of sanitation service provision. Traditionally, sanitation provision is subsidised through the public sector with little expectation of full cost recovery. The private sector can play an important role in accelerating sanitation provision by offering alternate sanitation products and services at appropriate prices, while generating income. This programme focuses on the development, application and evaluation of business plans for the dual purpose of income generation and sanitation provision. This includes market research and analysis, financing arrangements, business legislation analysis, product and service development, business management, and financial planning associated with new sanitation models.
While closing the sanitation gap, innovative sanitation technologies can save freshwater use and transform pollutant pathways to valorisation of human waste while establishing new utility management and processes. This means evolving away from pure hardcore engineering and asset management towards managing and regulating several supply chains. This transformation will embed a new market for sanitation and meet several of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, while ensuring dignity for all.