India has launched one of the most ambitious sanitation programmes in the world. More than 31 million toilets have been built in the last 2-and-odd years. Overall, 110 million and possibly 120 million toilets will be built by October 2, 2019, the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. Many of these will be single- or double-pit toilets and in some cases, septic tanks.
In cities and towns too, small and large sewerage treatment plants are coming up. It is now mandatory for any set of 20 flats or 20 buildings in a layout to have their own wastewater treatment plant and reuse waste-water.
Both pit toilets /septic tanks and wastewater treatment plants generate sludge. The treatment mechanism is also the same in the systems. Bacteria - aerobic and unaerobic - eat up the waste and convert it into fluids and gases.
The cleaning up of human waste is a great digestion process for bacteria and other micro-organism.
Since the scale of the sludge generation has become large and much of it is decentralised there is now increasing interest to understand the enzymes and bacteria that can help hasten the decomposition process of sludge and wastewater and therefore make the whole system less odourous, less repugnant to the eye, quicker in action and that which will make sure that the septic tanks and pits function well and take a longer time to clean or fill up.
The DRDO has come out with its own patented bacterial culture for toilet systems called bio-toilets. The claim is that the toilets never need any sludge to be removed and that the water or liquid waste that comes out from the toilets is safe and meets discharge standards.
Bio-clean
Another produce in the market and which one observed in the recently held Faecal Sludge Management conference in Chennai was a product called Bio-clean. This is also an enzyme and bacteria culture which the manufacturers claim can prevent drains and septic tanks from getting clogged, removes odours and in general keeps the system working well.
This product is available on marketing sites online also.
In the villages around Kolar a product called Septab has been long available in small shops. People believe that if a pit fills up by adding the Septab to the pit the life of the pit is extended as the solids are digested, making space for more.
While it is an exciting time for researchers and product manufacturers the plethora of products available in the market can be confusing to the buyer. There are algae and fungi, effective micro-organisms and enzymes, bacterial cultures and digesters all claiming to do many good things.
It is time an independent regulatory regime be set up and standards adhered to for testing these products for their efficacy and be done under one umbrella.
If the products do really well and as they claim they can be a solution for a staggering sludge management challenge that India faces.
An independent certification body for these products would be in the interest of both manufacturers and consumers and in the long run this would be water and wastewater wisdom.
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