Hebron, Palestine
Despite severe
political and economic instability in the region, the ecological
sanitation pilot project in Palestine is a success, particularly in the
areas of capacity building, sustainability, local adaptation and social
adaptability. The project, undertaken by Sida and the Palestine
Hydrology Group (PHG), demonstrates the feasibility of household
ecological sanitation (based on urine diversion) in the Hebron area.
The hot, dry
climate of the West Bank, combined with a serious freshwater shortage
and an abundant supply of limestone powder, creates an ideal situation
for ecosan implementation. About 80% of the rainwater in the West Bank
is controlled by Israel and local piped water systems serve less than
half of the Palestinian population. Water scarcity in the region is
aggravated by untreated black and greywater discharge and unsanitized
sewage being released into the environment.
Of an original
goal of 75 ecotoilet installations, 28 households have been fitted.
Initial project objectives and timelines approved in early 2000 had to
be revised as a result of the conflict in the area. The clash between
Israel and Palestine has also affected the employment and income of
target area residents; so much of the project has been fully, rather
than partially, subsidized. As such, economic sustainability of this
project is currently unattainable.
Although the
project has been deemed successful in the fundamental areas of
ecological sanitation, some improvement is needed to complete the cycle
of returning nutrients to the environment. Some households are using the
urine to fertilize tomato and olive trees, but many households have not
yet emptied their chambers or are using septic tanks to dispose of the
urine and anal cleaning water and dumping dehydrated faeces with
household waste.
To have an
environmental impact in the West Bank ecological sanitation will have to
be implemented on a much larger scale.
For more
information please contact Yousef Subuh (
)
or visit the Palestine Hydrology Group's website at
www.phg.org/projects/dry/dry.html (website no longer online) |
