Informal settlements on the outskirts of urban areas often lack adequate infrastructure and administrative coverage. Moves towards decentralising wastewater management systems may provide new chances for responding to the needs of the peri-urban poor and offer opportunities for providing services that combine sanitation with effective reuse of wastewater.

An article on decentralised wastewater management in low-income countries examines various technologies and management arrangements, which may be appropriate in peri-urban areas. The authors also consider the management arrangements and responsibilities for operation and maintenance in relation to the capabilities of the individual householders, community groups or government departments. They emphasise that the delegation of responsibilities must be clearly worked out with all stakeholders involved.

Decentralised approaches may offer increased opportunities for local residents to participate in planning and decision-making. This has the potential to increase responsiveness to local demands and needs. They may achieve a better distribution of benefits than centralised management approaches and provide opportunities for marginalised groups and the poor to be involved in income generating activities associated with recovering and reusing resources.

Although promising technologies exist and there are successful pilot schemes in operation, the authors do not underestimate the constraints to implementation, noting that:

• Planning and implementation of effective wastewater systems involving treatment and reuse will only occur when the need for improved systems has been recognised by members of house­holds and communities.
• Currently, there is little willingness to pay for improved services. This may be due to the lack of awareness about the environmental impacts or due to the fact that peripheral communities are simply too poor to be able to contribute towards reducing pollution.
• Without technical assistance and enhancing the ability and skills of decentralised bodies, the danger is that the problems of institutional capacity and neglect of maintenance that exist under centralised operations will simply be passed on to the new structures.
• Lack of availability and ownership of land is a real constraint especially for peri-urban residents. Without secure tenancy, they do not have incentives to invest in improving wastewater management practices.
• Wastewater reuse provides opportunities for recovering costs but this is unlikely to cover capital costs. Economic pressures from the marketing of fertiliser can also limit the re-use of excreta which may cancel out the incentive for wastewater re-use.

The main challenge is to create a demand for improved wastewater management that focuses on the health, environmental and associated economic benefits. Subsequently, this demand needs to be informed about the wide range of options that exist – both from a technical and a managerial perspective.

Key policy recommendations are that:

• Wastewater management systems should be incorporated within an integrated framework of water resource management and provision of other services.
• Policy needs to be based upon practical experiences and realistic objectives. It should be developed in close collaboration with organisations involved with communities for who decentralised wastewater systems are designed to serve.
• Appropriate standards for the design and construction of decentralised wastewater systems need to be developed. Realistic and acceptable standards for treatment and reuse must be promoted.
• The facilitation, monitoring and co-ordination roles of centralised agencies should be strengthened, in order to improve the performance of decentralised systems.
• The experience, support and monitoring of demonstration projects should be more widely documented and circulated to stimulate wider interest.

In order to achieve these goals, a concerted capacity building effort is required. Stakeholders will need to be trained and technical information disseminated in appropriate forms and languages understandable by those responsible for the design and operation of wastewater, faecal sludge collection and disposal systems.

Source(s):
‘Decentralized wastewater management in peri-urban areas in low-income countries’ by Jonathan Parkinson and Kevin Tayler, Environment & Urbanization Vol 15 No 1 April 2003, pp75-89 Full document.

Funded by: DFID (IUDD R8056)

id21 Research Highlight: 10 June 2004

Further Information:
Jonathan Parkinson
GHK International
526 Fulham Road
London SW6 5NR
UK

Tel: 44 (0)20 7471 8000
Fax: 44 (0)20 7736 0784
Contact the contributor: parkinsonj@bigfoot.com

GHK International, UK

Kevin Tayler
30 Swindon Road
Horsham
West Sussex RH12 2HD
UK

Contact the contributor: taylerk@tinyonline.co.uk

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'Making public-private community partnerships work for Asia’s urban poor'

'Water and sanitation goals: is progress in the pipeline?'

'Urban Waste Expertise Programme'

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