Flushed into the open
FLUSHING excreta is not ecologically viable, says Uno Winblad, coordinator of a Rs 2.5-crore international research and development project "Sanres" (Sanitation and Recycle) which is funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency and aimed at developing alternative, eco-logical concepts of sanitation for urban areas.
"From an ecological point of view it (flushing excreta) is madness," he says. Winblad explains that on an average, a person in America and Europe produces 400 to 500 litres of urine and about 50 litres of faeces each year. Further, 15,000 litres of pure water is used to flush this away, thereby raising the quantity of polluted water to more than 15,000 litres per person. To this is added an average of 15,000 to 30,000 litres of bath water and wash water per person. Winblad says that instead of handling 50 litres of faeces, we end up polluting a large volume of water, Winblad points out.
In developing countries, 90 per cent of all sewerage is simply discharged into the environment without any treatment, he says, adding that this leads to pollution of ground water, surface water and soil.