Honeysuckers - Sanitation solution from the informal sector
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1. India produces large amounts of sewage sludge and human waste from septic tanks and pit latrines each year that could provide nutrients to improve soil health, but most of this potential resource goes wasted. 2. Bangalore has poor sanitation infrastructure and treatment, leading to untreated sewage flowing in rivers and pollution. Septic tanks and pit latrines are common. 3. "Honey-sucker" trucks have emerged as an informal sector business to empty pit latrines and septic tanks in Bangalore, transporting the waste to be composted. This waste is a nutrient resource for farmers but also poses health risks if not properly treated.
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Honeysuckers - Sanitation solution from the informal sector
- 1. Honey-suckers Sanitation systems without pipes Eco-san at work ?
- 2. Based on an ongoing research Sludge Reuse from Mega-Cities – A Southern India Case Elisabeth Kvarnström, Vectura Consulting, Inc. Joep Verhagen, IRC Mats Nilsson, MN Context Vishwanath Srikantaiah, Biome Karan Singh, Biome Shubha Ramachandran, Biome
- 3. India - 17.9 million cubic meters of sewage and 4 million tons of sludge each year Combined nutrient contribution of 2.4 lakh tons of N, 1.3 lakh tons of P2O5 and 1.2 lakh tons of K2O besides 12 lakh tons of organic carbon most of which are being wasted leading to pollution of soil and water bodies. To exploit the huge potentiality of anthropogenic wastes as a supplement to fertilizers, many changes in policies and practices of civic bodies are needed besides a thorough research on use of anthropogenic wastes in agriculture. The only alternative to address these problems is to go for scientific use of Anthropogenic Wastes in agriculture.
- 4. Septic tanks and Pit Latrines India has 102 million septic tanks and pit latrines . (World Bank, 2006) India has more than 68 million single pit or double pit toilets in rural areas (ddws.nic.in)
- 5. Present Agriculture Scenario in India The fertilizer cost has escalated enormously the demand for fertilizer use is increasing. Indiscriminate use of fertilizer has deteriorated soil health. The availability of organic manures is limited and organic carbon content of semi arid tropical soils is very low. The multi-micronutrients deficiency in soils is wide spread.
- 6. We are in the midst of problems Shortage and escalating cost of fertilizers Growing demand for fertilizers Nutrient deficiencies in soils Declined yield of crops Decreased availability of good quality water Increased production of highly polluting industrial wastes, posing disposal problems
- 7. Bangalore –Sanitation Sanitation deficiency is largely prevalent in the conurbation and green belt of Bangalore. In conurbation areas, only 47% of households have toilets, 19% share toilets and a significant 35% defecate in the open. But the state of sanitation is worse in green belt areas where only 26% households have toilets while 4% share toilets and a staggering 70% defecate in the open. This shows that there is a high disparity in access to sanitation facilities across the core area and suburban and rural areas. The absence of a sewage network in conurbation areas, the green belt and rural areas is the main shortcoming. Survey of the Environment report -2008 , Govt. of Karnataka
- 8. Foam rivers Untreated sewage primary cause
- 10. The informal sector in urban sanitation
- 12. In informal vacant sites
- 13. Pit toilets are common in the urban periphery
- 14. The Honeysucker vacum sucks a pit toilet
- 15. Mechanization eliminates manual scavenging
- 16. Trucks are now indigenously developed
- 17. They have a water jetting and vacum sucking pump (upto 30 H.P.)
- 19. The barrels – informal sector body building works
- 20. We estimate nearly 300 honey-suckers in Bangalore
- 21. Protocol for safe disposal needs to be evolved
- 22. The sewage is nutrient rich but also pathogenic
- 23. Cost to building Rs 1200/ to Rs 3000/
- 24. Soil as a nutrient recipient rather than water
- 26. In many apartments a daily visit
- 28. Compost after 3 months- sells for Rs 1500/- to Rs 2000/- a tractor load
- 29. Compost sample being collected for testing
- 31. The crop
- 32. The fruits
- 33. The soil – alive with alive with earthworms and ants
- 34. The Economics For the truck • A Honeysucker costs Rs 13.50 lakhs • Charges Rs 1500 / per trip • Can do 5 trips in a day • Income Rs 7500 a day Rs 2.25 Lakhs a month • Income in a year Rs 27 lakhs • Expenditure for O and M - Rs 4.0 lakhs • One truck can service a population of 20,000 assuming a 2 year pit emptying cycle
- 35. The Economics for the household • Rs 1500 / every 2 years • Rs 60 / a month
- 36. The Economics for a farmer • Free compost • On labour - expenditure Rs 5000 / • Savings per acre Rs 20,000 to Rs 50,000 /- on manure alone (10 to 25 tractor load per acre per year )
- 37. Business Model Institutional Technology and environment environment
- 38. Way forward… • Better understanding, from a business and sanitation perspective, of existing practices around the country • Embedding of current practices as an officially accepted option to sanitation service delivery for all urban dwellers
- 39. Way forward • Developing a protocol for the inclusion of non- sewerage based or on-plot sanitation systems in India • Developing a protocol and a legal frame-work for handling, transportation, composting and application of nutrients from septage and on-plot systems • Research on understanding nutrient – pathogens and safe application for nutrient reuse
- 40. Way forward • Civic authorities to incorporate sewage disposal systems in building plan approvals • Land use plans to earmark space for solid and liquid waste composting . • Separate systems for toilets and grey-water • Understanding the pit / groundwater interface and designing systems for non-pollution.
- 41. Thank you! • Elisabeth Kvarnström, Vectura Consulting, Inc., elisabeth.kvarnstrom@vectura.se • Joep Verhagen, IRC, verhagen@irc.nl • Mats Nilsson, MN Context, mncontext@gmail.com • Vishwanath Srikantaiah, Biome, zenrainman@gmail.com • Karan Singh, Biome, karan@biome-solutions.com • Shubha Ramachandran, Biome, shubha@biome- solutions.com