Did you know we recognize World Toilet Day, on November 19 throughout the world? It was actually first recognized on November 19th, 2013, and it's goal is to raise awareness of the sanitation crisis facing billions of people throughout the world. It is hard to comprehend for those of us living in a place where good sanitation is taken for granted. Unfortunately, for billions of people, 40% of the world's population, this is not the case.  Comparatively, of the world's 7 billion people 6 billion have cell phones, but only 4.5 have access to good sanitation.

As part of the UN's Millennium Development Goals established in 1901, World Toilet Day became an official UN day. This occurred as the result of a joint initiative between Singapore and World Toilet Organization which led to Singapore's first UN resolution called "Sanitation for All".  This resolution calls for a collective action to address the world's sanitation crisis. As a result, this resolution was adopted by 122 countries at the 67th UN General Assembly.  On July 24th, 2013 World Toilet Day became an official UN Day.

In addition, Unicef, which operates on the ground in 150 countries, has also been actively working to address this crisis, by increasing awareness through their WASH (water, sanitation and hygiene) program.  These are all equally interdependent as without good sanitation there is water contamination and without clean water, good hygiene is non-existent.   Moreover, one issue cannot be addressed without addressing the others.

Why is this important?

Up until the early 1990's the poor sanitation affecting  2.5 billion people worldwide received very little attention throughout the world. As a result, approximately 1 million people die every year due to poor sanitation and hygiene. This crisis disproportionately affects poor and undereducated communities throughout the world.  Unfortunately, very little was being done to address the situation.

This has far reaching effects on the health, economics, women's rights, education and the environment in a large portion of the world's population.  As long as the sanitation crisis continues breaking the cycle of poverty in these areas is very difficult.

Sanitation

- Over 1000 children die each day from diarrheal diseases due to poor sanitation.  This is the 2nd leading cause of children's death globally. By providing good sanitation the number of children who die from diarrheal disease can be reduced by 1/3.  Add hygiene promotion, such as teaching proper hand washing and this will increase to a 2/3 reduction in child mortality.

- Due to a lack of clean, safe toilets many girls miss out on an education, especially as they reach puberty. This can have far reaching effects on their future earnings. By changing this the cycle of poverty in which many of them exist can be broken.  When girls don't have safe clean toilets there is a greater drop out rate and low attendance rate in schools.  Consequently, when safe and clean toilets are available female school attendance rates increase substantially.

2015 Sanitation deadline

- The 2015 deadline to halve the population living with poor sanitation has helped raise awareness about the crisis.  Over 1.8 billion people were able to gain access to to improved sanitation since 1990, but there is still a long way to go. They missed their target by over 700 million people.  Over 1 billion people still live in areas that practice open defecation.  Moreover, the practice of open defecation can not only affect health, but have a devastating effect on the environment, as well.  Human waste is usually disposed of in local waterways and in open fields.  This can adversely affect drinking water leading to disease and illness.  Also, airborne illnesses are spread by flies landing on open feces then transporting fecal matter to drinking water and food.  Even in some urban areas that have indoor plumbing, the waste empties to septic systems that drain to local waterways. This system can also lead to environmental and health issues.

-  According to WHO (World Health Organization), a population plagued by illness and disease can have a detrimental effect on the national GDP.  A 2006 study in India showed that poor sanitation resulted in a estimated loss of 6.4% in India's GDP (Gross Domestic Product).  And it has been shown that for every US$1 spent on improving sanitation resulted in a US$9 savings on health care costs, treatment and other gains.

What is being done now

Installing and operating  sewage and wastewater treatment plants is prohibitively expensive in these poor areas making them unaffordable.  Besides which, standard water treatment plants are not environmentally friendly because of the excessive amount of energy used.  As a result these communities have opted for Basic Sanitation Units.

In these low cost, dry or low water units, waste can be either collected and treated right on the spot or transported to a local facility. Here they are treating it using methods that can produce a varied amount of products.  Some of these products include fertilizer, soil conditioners and biofuel.

As more attention is being focused on this crisis, organizations throughout the world are addressing this urgent issue.

SuSanA

In 2007, the Sustainable Sanitation Alliance, SuSanA, was established.  This organization combines the efforts of a wide range of international communities who share a common vision on sustainable sanitation. They offer a platform through which discussion, education and the sharing of ideas and solutions for this crisis can be achieved.

In 2011, Bill and Melinda Gates, through their Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Program, launched and funded Reinvent the Toilet Challenge.  This program has a goal of providing low-water consumption, affordable and hygienic toilet systems that do not need to connect to a sewer system.  Grants have been awarded to 16 researchers worldwide who are using innovative approaches to engineering designs for a safe and sustainable management of human waste.

In 2015, the UN came out with its new global agenda and it's 17 Sustainable Development Goals to reach by 2030.  Its sixth goal calls for the end of open defecation and adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all.

Sanergy

Sanergy is one of the companies working on innovative solutions to address this crisis through the development of a model utilizing a four tiered approach.

1.They create low-cost high-quality sanitation facilities that because of their small footprint can be installed close to homes.  They can also be installed near community centers like schools, churches and clinics.  Their Fresh Life sanitation units are pre-fabricated locally and are easy to maintain.  And they come equipped with handwashing stations.

2.  The units are franchised to local operators who purchase and operate the Fresh Life facilities.  These operators are franchise partners, who receive much support through training, operational and marketing support, access to financing and waste removal service.

4. Waste is collected on a daily basis by the Fresh Life frontline comprised of local residents who have received training in how to safely remove waste cartridges and replacing them with fresh ones.  The waste is then transported back to the processing facility.

5.  Once at the facility the waste is converted into fertilizer, insect based animal feed and biofuel. The fertilizer is then sold to farmers at an affordable rate compared with the exorbitant costs of buying the alternative fertilizer which is imported.  The animal feed, which is very nutritious is also sold to farmers for them to use in lieu of the lower quality Omena (fish meal).  Omena has been the primary source of protein used in animal feed, but it not sustainably sourced and is usually mixed with other materials like sand, shells and other fish.

Awareness

Creating awareness of this crisis is one of the ways in which we can come up with viable solutions.  As part of Sun Fire Plumbing's mission we like to bring issues like this to the forefront to spread awareness, through education we can all become part of the solution.  Please click on any of the links above to find out more information about the various programs and organizations working to end the poor sanitation crisis.