ASSIGNMENT 6

QUES 1 EXPLAIN THE IMPORTANCE OF RURAL SANITATION?

ANS The Central Rural Sanitation Programme, which was started in 1986, was one of India’s first
efforts to provide safe sanitation in rural areas. This programme focussed mainly on providing
subsidies to people to construct sanitation facilities. However, a study done by the government in
1996-97 showed that it was more important to raise awareness about sanitation as a whole rather
than to just provide subsidies for construction. This understanding marked the first shift in the
programme. In 1999, a restructured Total Sanitation Campaign (TSC) was initiated to create supply-
led sanitation by promoting local sanitary marts and a range of technological options.
The rural sanitation campaign has the following as its objectives:

 Accelerate sanitation coverage in rural areas.

 Generate a push from the people to get facilities rather than expect the Government to do it
(demand-led promotion).
 Focus on intensive education and awareness campaigns to

 Take the scheme beyond rural households to rural schools and nursery schools. Here again,
the emphasis was placed on promoting good hygiene practices.
 Promote cost-effective and appropriate technologies.
 Through all the above, improve the health and quality of life in rural areas.

The last modification of the scheme happened in 2012. It was restructured and renamed as the
Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan. With an intent to transform India to "Nirmal Bharat", the scheme's revised
target for reaching total sanitation was changed from 2012 to 2022.
Understanding rural sanitation data

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 State of rural sanitation in India - Progress and performance - Data visualisation
tool by Arghyam
The Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation publishes data related to the rural sanitation
scheme on its website. The State of Sanitation Project is an effort to create simple tools that will
demystify large datasets and also compare it to other relevant datasets.
View the State of sanitation in India - Data visualisation tool.
From outlays to outcomes: understanding the status of rural sanitation data
The census 2011 data on rural sanitation coverage was a reality check to the existing
understanding that the government’s efforts at rural sanitation were moving rapidly towards
achieving universal coverage.
Below are some key lessons that emerged:

 A difference in the total number of rural households as counted by the census 2011 and
the government scheme – while in 2001, the difference was 0.14 lakhs, in 2011, the
difference had grown to 884.03 lakhs.
 A huge difference in the number of rural households with toilets. According to census
2011 data, only 30.7% of rural households had access to toilets in 2011. According to
rural sanitation scheme data the number was considerably larger at 79.9%.

About the State of Sanitation Project

The goal of the State of Sanitation project is to understand the success of the government’s rural
sanitation scheme from the lenses of coverage, equity, accountability, efficiency and health.

Open defecation in rural India remains a problem that perplexes policy makers and civil society
alike. India has the largest number of people who practice open defecation (626 million) and the
most number of child deaths due to poor water, sanitation and hygiene conditions compared to the
rest of the world.
While access to toilets is by itself an important aspect that needs to be understood, it is not enough
to reach the goal of total sanitation. Indeed, India’s rural sanitation scheme which was devised in
1986 and restructured in 2012 as the Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan (NBA) acknowledges this. Its goal is
not only universal toilet coverage by 2022, but also improving health and providing privacy and
dignity to women, with the overall goal of improving the quality of life of people living in rural areas.
Aims of the State of Sanitation project: Multiple agencies have assessed the status of the rural
sanitation programme and have quantified its benefits over time. However, there have been few
attempts to provide an online, concurrent monitoring mechanism to track the status of both the
implementation of the scheme and the larger benefits from the scheme.
To this end, the project will:

 Design monitoring tools – this will include:

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  Online tools that help demystify government data and provide overlays
between multiple data sets relevant to sanitation. These tools will be opened
up to civil society and provide context to the large data sets.
 Participatory assessment tools that will attempt to qualify how the scheme
is working and issues in implementation, usage and achievement of the rural
sanitation scheme’s goals.
 Identify best practices and gaps in implementation – this will include:
 Ground verification of best practices and issues.
 Focussed efforts to document good practices and problems.

QUES 2 EXPLAIN WITH SKETCH. WORKING OF SEPTIC TANK AND

SOAK PIT.?
ANS

Your household liquid waste flows from the house into the septic tank where the sewage undergoes
a settlement process and is partially treated by bacteria.
This partially treated waste then travels from the tank to a disposal or absorption field, where it is
further broken down by natural processes. The type of disposal field depends on soil type, the slope
of the section, vegetation and underlying rock.

Your septic system is a living ecosystem where bacteria do the work of digesting and treating waste.
The septic tank retains fats and solids, and releases the liquid portion of the waste. This liquid
effluent flows into the disposal field and is further treated by the soil.

A healthy septic tank is a well balanced ecosystem where good bacteria thrive in the right amounts
to digest waste and treat the effluent water.

The contents of a healthy septic tank form 3 layers

 A layer of fats called scum, which floats on the surface of the liquid waste.
 A layer of clear liquid waste called effluent.
 A layer of solids called sludge, which sinks to the bottom.

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The heavier, solid particles in the sewage settle to the bottom of the tank forming a layer of sludge.
Lighter materials, including fat and grease, float to the surface forming the scum layer.
Bacteria living in the septic tank break down some of the organic solids into liquid components,
helping to reduce the build-up of sludge in the tank.
The scum helps prevent odours escaping and stops air entering. The treated effluent flows out of the
tank through an outlet pipe as new waste-water enters.

At this stage the effluent still contains large amounts of dissolved pollutants including salts and
nutrients such as compounds of nitrogen and phosphorus.
It also contains disease causing pathogens such as viruses, bacteria and worms.

In the absorption field, natural soil processes kill off more pathogens and break down some of the
nutrients that cause pollution. This is a slow process, and soil bacteria need oxygen to work, so it is
important not to overwhelm the soil with too much effluent. In time the effluent evaporates, is taken
up by plants nearby or is leaches into the groundwater zone. A hazard is created when effluent flows
along surface or subsoil pathways into drainage channels, creeks or rivers.

SOAK PIT
A soak pit, also known as a soakaway or leach pit, is a covered, porous-walled
chamber that allows water to slowly soak into the ground. Pre-settled effluent
from a collection and storage/treatment or (semi-) centralized treatment
technology is discharged to the underground chamber from which it infiltrates
into the surrounding soil.

Advantages
Can be built and repaired with locally available materials
Technique simple to apply for all users
Small land area is required

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Low capital costs; low operating costs
Recharging groundwater bodies

Disadvantages
Primary treatment is required to prevent clogging
May negatively affect soil and groundwater properties
Applicable only were soil conditions allow infiltration, the groundwater table is at least
1.5 m below the soak pit, there is no risk for flooding and any water well is in a distance
of at least 30 m
Difficult to realise in cold climate
Should be avoided for high daily volumes of discharged effluents

In Out

Precipitation, Greywater, Fertigation Water, Effluents from On-site Pre-settling Units -

Factsheet Block Title

Introduction
Factsheet Block Body
If there is no intention or no need to reuse wastewater, collected stormwater or
greywater, soak pits can offer a cost-efficient opportunity for a partial treatment of
waste- grey- or stormwater from a primary treatment (e.g. septic tank, twin-pits for
pour-flush toilets, biogas settler, anaerobic baffled reactor, etc.) and a relatively safe
way of discharging it to the environment and therewith recharging groundwater bodies.
As wastewater (greywater or blackwater after primary treatment) percolates through
the soil from the soak pit, small particles are filtered out by the soil matrix and organics
are digested by microorganisms. The wastewater effluent is absorbed by soil particles
and moves both horizontally and vertically through the soil pores. Sub-soil layers
should therefore be water permeable in order to avoid fast saturation. High daily
volumes of discharged effluents should be avoided (HEEB et al. 2008). Thus, soak pits
are best suited for soil with good absorptive properties; clay, hard packed or rocky soil
is not appropriate. Soak pits are used the same way as leach fields, but require less
space as well as less operation and maintenance. But they generally can also receive less
influent and the groundwater pollution may be higher than with leach fields.

Factsheet Block Title

Design Considerations

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Factsheet Block Body

Schematic of a soak pit. Source: TILLEY et al. (2014)

The soak pit , consisting basically of a simple pit (generally approximately 1 m3), should
be between 1.5 and 4 m deep, but as a rule of thumb, never less than 2 m above the
groundwater table. It should be located at a safe distance from a drinking water source
(ideally more than 30 m). The soak pit should be kept away from high-traffic areas so
that the soil above and around it is not compacted. It can be left empty and lined with a
porous material to provide support and prevent collapse, or left unlined and filled with
coarse rocks and gravel. The rocks and gravel will prevent the walls from collapsing, but
will still provide adequate space for the wastewater. In both cases, a layer of sand and
fine gravel should be spread across the bottom to help disperse the flow. To allow for
future access, a removable (preferably concrete) lid should be used to seal the pit until
it needs to be maintained.

Factsheet Block Title

Health Aspects/Acceptance
Factsheet Block Body
As long as the soak pit is not used for raw sewage, and as long as the previous collection
and storage/treatment technology is functioning well, health concerns are minimal. The
technology is located underground and, thus, humans and animals should have no
contact with the effluent. It is important however, that the soak pit is located at a safe
distance from a drinking water source (ideally at least 30 m).

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Since the soak pit is odourless and not visible, it should be accepted by even the most
sensitive communities.

Factsheet Block Title

Operation & Maintenance
Factsheet Block Body

Open Soak pit with installed PVC pipe in Quayerma, Mali. Source: AHRENS (2005)

A well-sized soak pit should last between 3 and 5 years without maintenance. To extend
the life of a soak pit, care should be taken to ensure that the effluent has been clarified
and/or filtered to prevent the excessive build-up of solids.

The soak pit should be kept away from high-traffic areas so that the soil above and
around it is not compacted. Particles and biomass will eventually clog the pit and it will
need to be cleaned or moved. When the performance of the soak pit deteriorates, the
material inside the soak pit can be excavated and refilled.

To allow for future access, a removable (preferably concrete) lid should be used to seal
the pit until it needs to be maintained.

Applicability
A soak pit does not provide adequate treatment for raw wastewater and the pit will
quickly clog. It should be used for discharging pre-settled blackwater or greywater.

Soak pits are appropriate for rural and peri-urban settlements. They depend on soil
with a sufficient absorptive capacity , whereas clay soils as well as hard packed or rocky
soils are not appropriate . They can be used in almost every temperature, although

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 there may be problems with pooling effluent in areas where the ground freezes. They
are not appropriate for areas prone to flooding or that have high groundwater tables
and should be constructed in a distance of at least 30 m from drinking water wells in
order to prevent cross-contamination

QUES 3 EXPLAIN THE NECCESITY OF WASTE WATER RECYCLING AND

REUSE WITH EXAMPLE?
ANS WASTEWATER REUSE
As world populations require both more clean water and better ways to dispose of
wastewater, the demand for water reclamation will increase. Reclaimed water, sometimes
called recycled water, is former wastewater that has been treated to remove solids and
certain impurities, and then reused for a variety of applications including landscaping,
irrigation, and recharging groundwater aquifers. Treating water for reuse is an important part
of water conservation efforts and in some regions of the world makes great economic
sense.

Benefits of wastewater reuse:

 The water and nutrient content in treated wastewater can be very useful for agricultural
purposes
 It enables municipalities to generate revenue by selling their sewage
 Wastewater reuse contributes to National Development
 It provides a strong motivation for effective O&M thus controlling the Environmental
pollution
 Provides opportunities for privatization
Other uses of cleaned wastewater:
 Industrial reuse of cooling systems, boiler feed, process water
 Wastewater reuse in agriculture and horticulture, watering of lawns, golf courses
 Ground water recharge for augmenting ground water resources for downstream uses or
for preventing saline water intrusion in coastal areas
 Fire protection
The Headworks MBBR/IFAS biological system offers a novel and dependable solution for
wastewater treatment, recovery, and reuse when non potable water quality is required, e.g. ,
for field irrigation, industrial use, wash water, flush water, etc. IFAS/MBBR technology offers
flexible solutions to a multitude of biological process upgrade applications such as nitrogen
and phosphorus removal, increases in treatment capacity, and wastewater reuse.
The term “wastewater” doesn’t have particularly appealing connotations. In areas of the
world where water appears to be an infinite and easily accessed resource, we pay little
attention to what happens to the water after we’ve used it.

Despite the fact that the earth is composed of 70% water, it is not the infinite resource we
imagine it to be. In reality, 97.5% of all water on Earth is salt water and less than one percent
of the fresh water available is accessible for direct human use.

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 That 1% doesn’t stretch very far when we don’t implement sustainable methods to properly

recycle it.

The problem with us humans is that we’re great at creating waste, but not so great at safely
disposing of it (just check out the oceans and previously sandy beaches that are now
saturated in human trash for evidence).

Our water sources are becoming increasingly polluted because of failure to impose
regulations on huge industries and most individuals’ casual approach to disposing of their
wastewater. The need to recycle our wastewater is becoming critical as water shortages
spread through the world – and not just the developing parts. It is important that small
businesses take part in environmental initiatives. This includes small gestures, for instance
this water bead retailer chooses non-toxic and biodegradable products over cheaper
alternatives.

Addressing Water Shortage Issues

Many of us have developed water habits that

are so deeply ingrained that it would be difficult to drastically decrease our water use – and,
honestly, residential water use doesn’t even come close to industrial water use. While we
should try to use less water, an effective and sustainable method is to treat the wastewater
we produce.

There are technologies that can treat and recycle water. Recycling water does decrease the
amount of water you use and treated water can be used for a number of applications.

Benefit the Environment

Remember when the BP fiasco happened and gallons of oil pollution were discharged into
our oceans? Gallons of untreated wastewater are released into our oceans every single day.

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Pollution is what is causing the current dead zones that are cropping up all over the world
and probably creating mutants out of the sea life the pollution doesn’t kill.

Treated wastewater can improve the quality of bodies of water and soils into which it is
released and benefit the environment.

Wastewater recycle and reuse: The need of the

hour - Report of a workshop in April 2012
organised by Ministry of Urban Development
A one day workshop on "Wastewater Recycle and Reuse: The need of the hour' was
organized by Ministry of Urban Development, Government of India, on 18 April 2012, with
the support of WSP, ADB, KfW, JICA and USAID. Partners to the workshop were CII -
Water Group and NJS Consultant (Japan) and NJS Engineers India Pvt Ltd.

In order to promote ongoing wastewater reuse efforts and to raise awareness amongst the policy
makers, donors, civil society and other stakeholders on the value of wastewater and the need to
promote wastewater reuse in India. With this objective, the workshop focused on following major
points:

1. Showcasing wastewater recycle and reuse projects in India and around the world;
2. Understand the drivers and policy initiatives/incentives for a successful wastewater
recycle and reuse program that are required to be addressed in India
3. What are the learning’s and what can the government do to promote wastewater recycle
and reuse in India?
4. Development of an India specific wastewater recycle and reuse guidelines document that
could be used by policy decision makers both in the government as well as private
industries.

Session 1: Opening Session

1. Welcome and Purpose of the workshop by Smt. Veena Kumari Meena, Director – LSG, Ministry
of Urban Development, Government of India
Smt. Meena welcomed all the participants and
explained the purpose of the workshop. She said that infrastructure of urban India is in very poor
state and is way behind to meet the demand of rapid urbanization. Existing water supply in all the
cities of India is irregular and short in supply. In such an environment, it is important to
understand the availability of water and the changes in water demand due to increased
industrialization and rapid increase in population of urban India. Based on the available
information, comprehensive planning of available fresh water and recycled water is needed to be
developed. All this needs active involvement of all the stakeholders.

2. Options under City Sanitation Plans: Christopher Juan Costain, Regional Team leader, WSP
India
is becoming a water scarce area. Only 13 percent of all wastewater in India is recycled. Sanitation

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is a not only a social challenge but also an economic challenge as good portion of GDP is lost
due to poor sanitation. As per the study conducted by MoUD in 435 cities of the country, none of
the city has been categorized under group ‘good’, only four cities are in 'OK' category, and rest
of the cities are either in 'Bad' or in 'Very bad' category. To develop infrastructure facilities in
areas coming under corporations, municipalities and town panchayats, Tamil Nadu and
Maharashtra government has initiated ‘Chief Minister Integrated Urban Development
Programme’.
One of the major issues regarding SWT is cost recovery, which is very crucial to invite private
players, therefore the objective of SWT should not be just 'recycle' of wastewater but also to get
'revenue' from it.

3. Initiatives by MoUD on Urban Sanitation: Dr. Ashok Singhvi, Joint Secretary - UD, MoUD, GoI
About 7.87 % urban households do not have access to latrines and defecate in the open. 8.13%
urban households use community latrines and 19.5% households use shared latrines. The status
in respect of the urban poor is even worse. The percentage of notified and non-notified slums
without latrines is 17 percent and 51 percent respectively. More than 37% of the total human
excreta generated in urban India, is unsafely disposed. This imposes significant public health and
environmental costs to urban areas that contribute more than 60% of the country’s GDP. Impacts
of poor sanitation are especially significant for the urban poor (22% of total urban population),
women, children and the elderly. The loss due to diseases caused by poor sanitation for children
under 14 years alone in urban areas amounts to Rs. 500 Crore at 2001 prices (Planning
Commission-United Nations International Children Emergency Fund (UNICEF), 2006).

MoUD has initiated 'City Sanitation Plan'. The objective of the plan is 'A comprehensive, holistic
and city wide plan addressing universal access, safe collection, 100% treatment of solid and liquid
waste'. MoUD is funding projects wherever possible from existing schemes. The Ministry of Urban
Development is implementing schemes such as the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal
Mission, the Urban infrastructure development scheme for small and medium towns (UIDSSMT).
Both these schemes have a time span of 7 years (2005-12) with a budget of Rs1, 00,000 crore of
which the share of the central government is Rs 50,000 crore. Lump sum provision of Rs.1894
crore has also been made for North Eastern states including Sikkim which provide funds for the
creation of urban infrastructure facilities. Another 500 crore has been sanctioned under urban
Infrastructure Development Scheme (UIDS), National Sanitation Mission Programme has
sanctioned 300 crore, and fund is also allotted to improve sanitation under 'Rajiv Gandhi Awas
Yojana'.

 Proving to people that wastewater is not waste but an economic resource.

 Wastewater manual/related documents are available in English. These should be
translated in vernacular language and should be easily and freely available.
 Document on best practices of wastewater should be prepared.
 Prepare City Sanitation Plan. This should include end to end cost, realistic picture of
available wastewater of the city, find sources of financing, how to recover the cost? Etc.

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 Moreover, the ‘City Sanitation Plan’ should be holistic and integrated. Holistic approach
should be worked out at national level also.
 Many multinational organizations have shown interest in wastewater reuse, like World
Bank, KfW etc. This fund should be leveraged for research and other needed support in
wastewater.
 Cities near the Ganga basin should leverage funds from “Ganga Action Plan’, which is
supporting the cities for reuse of wastewater.

Objectives for today’s workshop

 Comments/suggestions for ‘National Sanitation Programme’

 To discuss the good practices on wastewater reuse
 Panal consultants from each part of India
 To discuss the available sources of funding?
 How to workout the State Action Plan for all the states.

Session 2: Wastewaer recycle and reuse - International and Indian experience and
Drivers, Policy and Incentive of a successful wastewater recycle and reuse programe
Session chaired by Shri Ramesh Negi, CEO, DJB

1. Why we need to recycle wastewater and how?: Opening session address by Shri Negi:

 Wastewater is a resource which is readily available

 Water is an issue – availability is an issue – there is a competitive demand from all the
sector – the available source is wastewater
 Cities are not comfortable because of high urban growth and increasing demand
 Lack of natural source of water within city

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3. Cost of Recycling Vs Cost of water: Dr.Tariq, NJS Consultant
Average cost of wastewater treatment is Rs.4.50 to 6/Kl which can be used for agriculture and
garden purposes, and if the waste water has to be treated for direct drinking use with RO then
approximate cost of treatment is Rs.12/Kl. On the other hand, metro cities spend more than
Rs.20/Kl to bring potable water to its residents, like Chennai spends Rs.40 to 60/Kl, Hyderabad
spends Rs.28/Kl, Bangalore spends Rs.24/Kl and Delhi Rs.20/Kl.

4. Wastewater recycle and reuse - International Experience: Shri Edgar Firmenich, Senior Technical
Expert, KfW
KfW on behalf of 'German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development' has
committed 0.5 billion Euro/year (some as a grant and rest as an interest reduced loan) to urban
environment sector.

General Aspects of Water Reuse are:

 Increase in efficiency of water use

 Reduction of water loss
 Reduction of evaporation/transpiration, particularly in agri and industrial water use.

However, Water Reuse Projects have its complexity which could be understood from the
following diagram

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Technology for water reuse projects should be selected in coherence to target of reuse. KfW
has published a book based on its experience named ‘DWA Working Paper: Treatment Steps
for Water Reuse’. Mr. Firmenich then shared their experience on Jorden Project which is
supported by KfW. Agriuclture in Jorden is facing acute water scarcity due to climate change
and water reuse is one of the available option to tackle it. Three waste water treatment plant is
established which provided additional resource of 15-20 MCM/year. The treatment plants
also provided additional energy through hydro-power and reduced GW abstraction. Also,
great percentage of agriculture need is met.

Mr. Firmenich concluded that 'treatment plan should be designed as per the need', like in
Jordan agriculture need was on summer season only, so Water Treatment Plant (WTP) treats
water for agriculture in summer and water is treated for supplying drinking water to
neighbouring areas in other two seasons water. So, it is important that WTP should have the
flexibility to treat water for different purposes as per the demand.

5. International Practices and Indian Challenges in waste water: Subhas Verma, AEOM
He have given an overview of India Water Sector, where he discussed about the key drivers
for water reuse, opportunities available for reusing wastewater, and technical, financial and
social challenges of reusing wastewater.

About 71% of waste water in Class I cities and 96% in Class II cities remain untreated. As
per the 12th Planning Commission, total fund required to provide urban basic services is Rs.
129,237/- and JNNURM is the main vehicle for fund in urban development. JNNURM has
also encouraged the involvement of private sector in service delivery and management. After
explaining the meaning of wastewater reuse and its categories – direct and indirect, he
mentioned about a book named, ‘Water Reuse: Issues, Technologies and Application’, where
benefits of using wastewater and available technologies are discussed in details.

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QUES 4 EXPLAIN THE ROLE OF RECYCLE IN
HYDROLOGICAL CYCLE?

Ans The hydrologic -- or water -- cycle is the continuous movement of water between the
earth and the atmosphere. Water reaches land as precipitation such as rain and snow. Then
the water evaporates, condenses in the atmosphere to form clouds, and falls to the earth
again as precipitation, continuing the cycle.
When water falls to the ground it can collect on the land becoming streams, rivers, lakes, or
soaks in to the ground to become groundwater. Plants take up groundwater either using it or
releasing it to the atmosphere.

Why is the hydrologic cycle important?

The hydrologic cycle is important because it is how water reaches plants, animals and us!
Besides providing people, animals and plants with water, it also moves things like nutrients,
pathogens and sediment in and out of aquatic ecosystems.

Ways in which the hydrologic cycle is affected

One of the ways that water moves through the cycle is through its ability to permeate, or
soak, into the soil. There are four key areas that impact that part of the cycle:

1. changes in the ability of soil to soak up water through increases of impervious

surfaces, like roads and buildings, and removal of forest cover;
2. water withdrawals or impoundments (such as through wells or dams)
3. filling depressional wetlands;
4. and altering stream flows and beds.
5. he hydrologic cycle begins with the evaporation of water from the surface of the
ocean. As moist air is lifted, it cools and water vapor condenses to form clouds.
Moisture is transported around the globe until it returns to the surface as
precipitation. Once the water reaches the ground, one of two processes may occur;
1) some of the water may evaporate back into the atmosphere or 2) the water may
penetrate the surface and become groundwater. Groundwater either seeps its way to

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 into the oceans, rivers, and streams, or is released back into the atmosphere through
transpiration. The balance of water that remains on the earth's surface is runoff,
which empties into lakes, rivers and streams and is carried back to the oceans,
where the cycle begins again.
6. Lake effect snowfall is good example of the hydrologic cycle at work. Below is a
vertical cross-section summarizing the processes of the hydrologic cycle that
contribute to the production of lake effect snow. The cycle begins as cold winds
(horizontal blue arrows) blow across a large lake, a phenomena that occurs
frequently in the late fall and winter months around the Great Lakes.

Evaporation of warm surface water increases

the amount of moisture in the colder, drier air
flowing immediately above the lake surface.
With continued evaporation, water vapor in the
cold air condenses to form ice-crystal clouds,
which are transported toward shore.

7. By the time these clouds reach the shoreline, they are filled with snowflakes too large
to remain suspended in the air and consequently, they fall along the shoreline as
precipitation. The intensity of lake effect snowfall can be enhanced by additional
lifting due to the topographical features (hills) along the shoreline. Once the snow
begins to melt, the water is either absorbed by the ground and becomes
groundwater, or goes returns back to the lake as runoff.
8. Lake effect snow events can produce tremendous amounts of snow. One such event
was the Cleveland, Ohio Veteran's Day Snowstorm from November of 1996, where
local storm snowfall totals exceeded 50 inches over two to three days.

QUES 5 WHAT IS THE IMPORTANCE OF RURAL SANITATION WITH

REFERENCE TO PUBLIC HEALTH ANDENVIRONMENT ISSUE?
ANS Environmental sanitation is a major public health issue in India. Recent
interventional studies on environmental sanitation in India highlighted the importance
of prioritizing control strategies. Research related to the appropriate cost-effective
intervention strategies and their implementation in Indian context is a big challenge.
This paper discusses various intervention strategies related to environmental sanitation
in India and emphasizes to prioritize it according to the need of country.
Keywords: Control strategies, environmental sanitation, India, prioritization

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INTRODUCTION
Environmental sanitation envisages promotion of health of the community by providing
clean environment and breaking the cycle of disease. It depends on various factors that
include hygiene status of the people, types of resources available, innovative and
appropriate technologies according to the requirement of the community,
socioeconomic development of the country, cultural factors related to environmental
sanitation, political commitment, capacity building of the concerned sectors, social
factors including behavioral pattern of the community, legislative measures adopted,
and others. India is still lagging far behind many countries in the field of environmental
sanitation.[1] The unsanitary conditions are appalling in India and need a great sanitary
awakening similar to what took place in London in the mid-19th century.[2]
Improvement in sanitation requires newer strategies and targeted interventions with
follow-up evaluation.[3] The need of the hour is to identify the existing system of
environmental sanitation with respect to its structure and functioning and to prioritize
the control strategies according to the need of the country. These priorities are
particularly important because of issue of water constraints, environment-related
health problems, rapid population growth, inequitable distribution of water resources,
issues related to administrative problems, urbanization and industrialization, migration
of population, and rapid economic growth.

PRESENT SCENARIO
As per estimates, inadequate sanitation cost India almost $54 billion or 6.4% of the
country's GDP in 2006. Over 70% of this economic impact or about $38.5 billion was
health-related, with diarrhea followed by acute lower respiratory infections accounting
for 12% of the health-related impacts.[4] Evidence suggests that all water and
sanitation improvements are cost-beneficial in all developing world subregions.[5]
Sectoral demands for water are growing rapidly in India owing mainly to urbanization
and it is estimated that by 2025, more than 50% of the country's population will live in
cities and towns. Population increase, rising incomes, and industrial growth are also
responsible for this dramatic shift. National Urban Sanitation Policy 2008 was the
recent development in order to rapidly promote sanitation in urban areas of the
country. India's Ministry of Urban Development commissioned the survey as part of its
National Urban Sanitation Policy in November 2008.[6] In rural areas, local government
institutions in charge of operating and maintaining the infrastructure are seen as weak
and lack the financial resources to carry out their functions. In addition, no major city in
India is known to have a continuous water supply and an estimated 72% of Indians still
lack access to improved sanitation facilities.
Go to:

INTERVENTION STRATEGIES
A number of innovative approaches to improve water supply and sanitation have been
tested in India, in particular in the early 2000s. These include demand-driven
approaches in rural water supply since 1999, community-led total sanitation, public–
private partnerships to improve the continuity of urban water supply in Karnataka, and
the use of microcredit to women in order to improve access to water.[7]

17
Total sanitation campaign gives strong emphasis on Information, Education, and
Communication (IEC), capacity building and hygiene education for effective behavior
change with involvement of panchayati raj institutions (PRIs), community-based
organizations and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), etc. The key intervention
areas are individual household latrines (IHHL), school sanitation and hygiene education
(SSHE), community sanitary complex, Anganwadi toilets supported by Rural Sanitary
Marts (RSMs), and production centers (PCs). The main goal of the government of India
(GOI) is to eradicate the practice of open defecation by 2010. To give fillip to this
endeavor, GOI has launched Nirmal Gram Puraskar to recognize the efforts in terms of
cash awards for fully covered PRIs and those individuals and institutions who have
contributed significantly in ensuring full sanitation coverage in their area of operation.
The project is being implemented in rural areas taking district as a unit of
implementation.[8]
A recent study highlighted that policy shift to include better household water quality
management to complement the continuing expansion of coverage and upgrading of
services would appear to be a cost-effective health intervention in many developing
countries.[9] Most of the interventions (including multiple interventions, hygiene, and
water quality) were found to significantly reduce the levels of diarrheal illness, with the
greatest impact being seen for hygiene and household treatment interventions.[10]
Interventions to improve water quality at the household level are more effective than
those at the source.[11] Unfortunately, in developing countries, public health concerns
are usually raised on the institutional setting, such as municipal services, hospitals, and
environmental sanitation. There is a reluctance to acknowledge the home as a setting of
equal importance along with the public institutions in the chain of disease transmission
in the community. Managers of home hygiene and community hygiene must act in
unison to optimize return from efforts to promote public health.[12] A survey through
in-depth interviews with more than 800 households in the city of Hyderabad in India
concluded that, even if provided with market (not concessional) rates of financing, a
substantial proportion of poor households would invest in water and sewer network
connections.[13]
The role of the WHO Guidelines for Drinking Water Quality emphasizes an integrated
approach to water quality assessment and management from source to consumer. It
emphasizes on quality protection and prevention of contamination and advises to be
proactive and participatory, and address the needs of those in developing countries who
have no access to piped community water supplies. The guidelines emphasize the
maintenance of microbial quality to prevent waterborne infectious disease as an
essential goal. In addition, they address protection from chemical toxicants and other
contaminants of public health concern.[14]
When sanitation conditions are poor, water quality improvements may have minimal
impact regardless of amount of water contamination. If each transmission pathway
alone is sufficient to maintain diarrheal disease, single-pathway interventions will have
minimal benefit, and ultimately an intervention will be successful only if all sufficient
pathways are eliminated. However, when one pathway is critical to maintaining the
disease, public health efforts should focus on this critical pathway.[6] The positive
impact of improved water quality is greatest for families living under good sanitary
conditions, with the effect statistically significant when sanitation is measured at the
community level but not significant when sanitation is measured at the household level.

18
Improving drinking water quality would have no effect in neighborhoods with very
poor environmental sanitation; however, in areas with better community sanitation,
reducing the concentration of fecal coliforms by two orders of magnitude would lead to
a 40% reduction in diarrhea. Providing private excreta disposal would be expected to
reduce diarrhea by 42%, while eliminating excreta around the house would lead to a
30% reduction in diarrhea. The findings suggest that improvements in both water
supply and sanitation are necessary if infant health in developing countries is to be
improved. They also imply that it is not epidemiologic but behavioral, institutional, and
economic factors that should correctly determine the priority of interventions.[7]
Another study highlighted that water quality interventions to the point-of-use water
treatment were found to be more effective than previously thought, and multiple
interventions (consisting of combined water, sanitation, and hygiene measures) were
not more effective than interventions with a single focus.[15] Studies have shown that
hand washing can reduce diarrhea episodes by about 30%. This significant reduction is
comparable to the effect of providing clean water in low-income areas.[16]
Lack of safe water supply, poor environmental sanitation, improper disposal of human
excreta, and poor personal hygiene help to perpetuate and spread diarrheal diseases in
India. Since diarrheal diseases are caused by 20–25 pathogens, vaccination, though an
attractive disease prevention strategy, is not feasible. However, as the majority of
childhood diarrheas are caused by Vibrio cholerae, Shigellae dysenteriae type 1,
rotavirus, and enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli which have a high morbidity and
mortality, vaccines against these organisms are essential for the control of epidemics. A
strong political will with appropriate budgetary allocation is essential for the control of
childhood diarrheal diseases in India.[17]
Go to:

COMMUNITY-BASED MANAGEMENT APPROACH

National water policies are shifting to community-based management approach
because local authorities are in daily contact with users, of whom about 50% are
women. Historically, national policy shifted from attention to distribution of
investments in the water sector to reorganization of water agencies and to building up
the capacity of private or voluntary agencies. The local context allows for more efficient
and effective responses to local conditions. Local institutions and groups are better
equipped to solicit local participation. Local water resource planning is very important
in strengthening the economic and individual capacity of poor people in
underdeveloped areas. Experience in Mahesana, Banaskantha, and Sabarkantha in
Gujarat state supports this lesson learned. One of the obstacles in Gujarat to water
resource development is identified as increased demand for public water services and
inadequate provision of services due to remoteness of the area and financial limitations
of central agencies. Infrastructure is also poorly maintained.[18]
Providing private excreta disposal would be expected to reduce diarrhea by 42%, while
eliminating excreta around the house would lead to a 30% reduction in diarrhea. The
findings suggest that improvements in both water supply and sanitation are necessary if
infant health in developing countries is to be improved. They also imply that it is not
epidemiologic but behavioral, institutional, and economic factors that should correctly
determine the priority of interventions.[19]

19
Morbidity and mortality due to waterborne diseases have not declined commensurate
with increase in availability of potable water supply. More importantly, young children
bear a huge part of the burden of disease resulting from the lack of hygiene. India still
loses between 0.4 and 0.5 million children under 5 years due to diarrhea. While infant
mortality and under 5 mortality rates have declined over the years for the country as a
whole, in many states, these have stagnated in recent years. One of the reasons is the
failure to make significant headway in improving personal and home hygiene, especially
in the care of young children and the conditions surrounding birth.
Go to:

OTHER DEVELOPMENTS
The agriculture sector accounts for between 90 and 95% of surface and ground water in
India, while industry and the domestic sector account for the remaining. At the same
time, several important measures are being taken to deal with the above issues. On the
water resources management front, the National Water Policy, 2002 recognizes the
need for well-developed information systems at the national and state levels, places
strong emphasis on nonconventional methods for utilization such as interbasin
transfers, artificial recharge, desalination of brackish or sea water, as well as traditional
water conservation practices such as rainwater harvesting, etc., to increase utilizable
water resources. It also advocates watershed management through extensive soil
conservation, catchment area treatment, preservation of forests, and increasing forest
cover and the construction of check dams. The policy also recognizes the potential need
to reorganize and reorient institutional arrangements for the sector and emphasizes the
need to maintain existing infrastructure.
While no comprehensive study on equity issues relating to water supply, sanitation, and
health has been conducted for the country as a whole, common equity issues that plague
the sector in most developing countries also hold true for India. In addition,
comprehensive studies on the economic value of the water and sanitation sector in
India also do not exist.
It is important to reiterate the need for Rural Water Supply and Sanitation [RWSS] and
Urban Water Supply and Sanitation [UWSS] agencies to operate hand-in-hand with their
health and education counterparts to jointly monitor indicators of RWSS, UWSS, health,
education, poverty, and equity in order to make significant headway in the respective
sectors. Existing health promotion and education programmes should be made more
effective and geared toward achieving behavior changes needed to improve
hygiene.[20]
Go to:

URBAN SANITATION
Percent of urban population without proper sanitation in India is 63%. The 11th five year
plan envisages 100% coverage of urban water, urban sewerage, and rural sanitation by
2012. Although investment in water supply and sanitation is likely to see a jump of
221% in the 11th plan over the 10th plan, the targets do not take into account both the
quality of water being provided, or the sustainability of systems being put in place.[21]
Increasing emphasis on use of information technology applications in urban governance

20
and management to ensure quick access to information, planning, and decision support
systems are the primary concern areas related to environmental sanitation. Solid waste
management is also increasingly seen as an important area in UWSS. Legislation on
municipal waste handling and management has been passed in October 2000. Some
strategies on solid waste management include preparation of town-wise master plans,
training of municipal staff, IEC and awareness generation, involvement of community-
based and nongovernmental organizations, setting up and operation of compost plants
via NGOs and the private sector, enhancement of the capacities of some state structures
such as State Compost Development Corporations with emphasis on commercial
operations and private sector involvement. Variations in housing type, density and
settlement layout, poverty status, and access to networked services will lead to different
solutions for sanitation in different parts of the city or within the same
neighborhood.[22]

Challenges

1. Prevention of contamination of water in distribution systems,

2. Growing water scarcity and the potential for water reuse and conservation,
3. Implementing innovative low-cost sanitation system
4. Providing sustainable water supplies and sanitation for urban and semiurban areas
5. Reducing disparities within the regions in the country
6. Sustainability of water and sanitation services.

The public health challenge inherent in meeting the MDG targets is ensuring that
improvements result in access to water and sanitation for the critical at-risk
populations. Innovative approaches are required to ensure the availability of low-cost,
simple, and locally acceptable water and sanitation interventions and integrating these
approaches into existing social institutions such as schools, markets, and health
facilities.[4]

21
CONCLUSION
Implementation of low-cost sanitation system with lower subsidies, greater household
involvement, range of technology choices, options for sanitary complexes for women,
rural drainage systems, IEC and awareness building, involvement of NGOs and local
groups, availability of finance, human resource development, and emphasis on school
sanitation are the important areas to be considered. Also appropriate forms of private
participation and public private partnerships, evolution of a sound sector policy in
Indian context, and emphasis on sustainability with political commitment are
prerequisites to bring the change

22