New study analyzes options for wastewater treatment in Lower Egypt

New study analyzes options for wastewater treatment in Lower Egypt

Source: Daily News Egypt – February 24, 2012

CAIRO: Egypt has made good progress towards increasing access to sanitation in urban areas but access to waste water treatment in rural areas lags far behind, a recent study showed.

The World Bank and the University of Leeds launched a new study in Cairo that analyzed the cost-effectiveness of a range of investment options for wastewater treatment in terms of the relative health benefits these are likely to generate for downstream farmers and consumers.

The study [1], conducted by the University of Leeds, UK, in partnership with the World Bank and the Holding Company for Water and Waste Water, discussed the benefits of differing strategies for Wastewater Management in Lower Egypt using Quantitative Microbial Risk Analysis (QMRA).

“The study, which we are presenting today, discusses the selection of efficient and effective treatment technologies and would be a useful input to policy makers in the sanitation and health sectors in Egypt,” said David Craig, the World Bank Country Director for Egypt, Yemen and Djibouti.

Rates of sewerage connection in rural Egypt remained at only 18 percent in 2008. There is substantial evidence that informal discharges of untreated domestic wastewater in agricultural channels is widespread – and it is not surprising given the lack of facilities for collection and safe disposal of wastewater from household vaults.

The high rate of informal reuse of agricultural drainage water means that these wastewater discharges have a significant negative health impact. Domestic waste has significant potential as an input to agriculture and can be safely used as fertilizer if appropriately treated and regulated.

Many technologies exist, and indeed, simple improvements to existing domestic sanitary facilities could have significant benefits at a relatively low cost. The challenge is to work out what investment strategies make the most sense in terms of delivering a good service to citizens, protecting health and promoting agricultural efficiencies at the most efficient price.

The World Bank has been supporting Egypt’s reforms in the water supply and sanitation sector and continues to support improved access to sustainable rural sanitation services in Egypt, given its strong linkages to health and environment.

[1] Evans, B. and Iyer, P., 2012. Estimating relative benefits of differing strategies for management of wastewater in Lower Egypt using quantitative microbial risk analysis (QMRA). Washington, DC, World Bank Water Partnership Program, World Bank. viii, 36 p. Download report

Focusing Attention on the Critical Role of Gender in Water and Sanitation

In Nepal, reducing the time it takes to fetch water by just one hour could increase girls’ school enrollment by 30%.

While women’s lives around the world have improved dramatically, gaps remain in many areas, including water and sanitation. For example, a recent study in 44 developing countries found that women carry water more often than men by a ration of nearly 2 to 1. Time is but one cost. There are many. How can we draw more attention to gender issues in water and sanitation ? Perhaps through drawings.

The World Bank/WSP 2012 Calendar combines illustrations,  humor, and data to focus attention on the role of gender in developing countries’ ability to ensure improved water and sanitation services for all citizens.  Gender is also the focus of the World Bank’s 2012 World Development Report on Gender Equality and Development .

Take a look. Images are worth a thousand words– and they can speak on behalf of billions.

Comments and feedback on the calendar are welcome at wsp@worldbank.org.

See Related Content:

• Learn More
• Download Calendar: English | French | Spanish (PDF)
• Get Desktop Wallpapers
•  2012 World Development Report on Gender Equality and Development (PDF)
• Download Gender in Water and Sanitation (PDF)

Iraq: Saddam’s prison toilet destined for US museum

Saddam Hussein's prison toilet as shown on a 2008 CNN report

The U.S. military is taking Saddam Hussein’s prison toilet home to be displayed in a military police museum, Reuters says.

The stainless steel commode and a reinforced steel door have been removed from the cell where the dictator spent two years before his 2006 execution. [..] The villa where American troops built a maximum-security jail for Saddam and his henchman Chemical Ali sits on a U.S. complex near Baghdad’s airport known as Victory Base, which is scheduled to be handed over to Iraq’s government in December as U.S. forces withdraw completely by year’s end.

The toilet was removed in August 2011. It is being shipped to the US Army Military Police Museum at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, said U.S. military historian Lieutenant Colonel Jerry Brooks. Chemical Ali’s standard-issue combination toilet-sink is still in place, he added.

To see how Saddam’s prison cell looked like, see a 2008 CNN video report.

Source: Jim Loney, Reuters, 07 Nov 2011 ; CNN, 27 Mar 2008

International hygiene study: scores for personal and household hygiene in 12 countries presented

In the wake of Global Handwashing Day, the Hygiene Council has released more findings from its international HABIT Study (Hygiene: Attitudes, Behavior, Insight and Traits). Below are charts comparing handwashing and household hygiene scores for 12 countries.

Percentage of respondents who wash hands 5+ times daily

Percentage with High Household Hygiene Score

UAE: Students learn good health goes hand in hand with hygiene

The results of the international Dettol HABIT Study (Hygiene: Attitudes, Behaviour, Insight and Traits) were recently presented to health and safety professionals by expert professors from the Global Hygiene Council in Dubai. During the symposium, the Dubai Ministry of Education invited a number of young school students to learn about the importance of hygiene.

Professor Tariq Madani of the King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, held an interactive workshop for the children, which involved a demonstration of the Interactive ‘Glow germ Booth’.

The Dettol HABIT Study was carried out in 12 countries including Saudi Arabia and the UAE, the only countries where face-to-face interviews were conducted. The study found that people who have good manners have better personal hygiene and are almost two and a half times more likely to have good health with low levels of colds and diarrhoea.

Tunisia-Libya border: UNICEF sets up sanitation facilities at transit camps

UNICEF is covering the sanitation needs for more than 7,000 people who have fled the violence in Libya and find shelter in transit camps in southern Tunisia. The refugees first get registered in Ataawan transit camp, where they spend the night before moving on to Shousha camp.

Hygiene kits are being distributed in the camp and messages are also being prepared to raise awareness of good sanitation and hygiene practices, such as hand-washing.

UNICEF WASH Specialist Ahmedou Ould Sidi Ould Bahah is working at the border, assessing sanitation facilities including latrines, showers and water tanks in the Ataawan and Shousha transit camps.

He meets daily with national partners and volunteers, and liaises with the local municipality of Ben Guardane to ensure septic tanks are cleared in a timely manner.

A total of 632 latrines have been set up by UNICEF and partners at the camp, and more are being constructed.

Trucks are currently providing safe drinking water to Shousha but the drilling of a borehole at the camp is being considered to address water supply issues during the upcoming hot season.

Source: Roshan Khadivi, UNICEF, 30 Mar 2011

Save the Date: The Global Forum on Sanitation and Hygiene 2011, 9-14 October, Mumbai, India

The Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC) is pleased to announce “The Global Forum on Sanitation and Hygiene 2011,” to be arranged in Mumbai, India, from 9-14 October of this year. The event will be a vital platform to discuss and advance sanitation and hygiene issues of importance to billions of people.

Arranged by WSSCC, the event has several aims. First, it will facilitate learning and sharing between WSSCC members, sector practitioners and policymakers. Second, it will energize professional communities through an exclusive platform dedicated to sanitation and hygiene. Third, it will showcase knowledge, investment, communications, advocacy, partnership and networking approaches. And finally, it will strengthen national, regional, South-South and global dialogue and collaboration.

For hundreds of WSSCC members, sector professionals, country agency representatives and individuals from civil society, business and WSSCC partner organizations, the forum will be an exciting week of learning and sharing on the critical sanitation and hygiene issues of our time.

For more information, or to join the mailing list for regular updates, visit http://www.wsscc.org/node/1251. You may also download the official 1^st Announcement in PDF form here.

The 2^nd Announcement, with more programmatic and participation details, will be available in late April 2011.

Egypt, Cairo: the revolution’s toilets, Tahrir Square

Even revolutionaries have to go the toilet. This picture shows the mundane side of life at Cairo’s central Tahrir Square, which was the media focal point for anti-Mubarak protesters during 18 days of demonstrations. This is one of a series of pictures that BBC’s Yolande Knell took during a tour of the area. She writes:

The camp toilets are here in a shed formerly used by construction workers near the Egyptian Museum. After 18 days, the smell is quite incredible.

View the full pictorial display of the camp on the BBC web site (11 Feb 2011).

Research project on safe wastewater reuse for urban poor concludes

The WHO/IDRC/FAO research project on non-treatment options for safe wastewater use in poor urban communities was concluded on 30 April 2010. The report of the final workshop in Amman, Jordan (7-10 March 2010) has now been published.

The objective of the project was to test the applicability of the third edition of the WHO Guidelines for the Safe Use of Wastewater, Excreta and Greywater in Agriculture and Aquaculture (WHO, 2006). For this purpose the following four field studies were conducted:

• Ghana Kumasi: Evaluation of non-treatment options for maximizing public health benefits of WHO guidelines governing the use of wastewater in urban vegetable production in Ghana.
• Ghana/Tamale: Minimizing health risks from using excreta and grey water by poor urban and peri-urban farmers in the Tamale municipality, Ghana.
• Jordan: Safe use of greywater for agriculture in Jerash Refugee Camp: focus on technical, institutional and managerial aspects of non-treatment options.
• Senegal: Proposition d’étude en vue de l’intégration et de l’application des normes de la réutilization des eaux usées et excréta dans l’agriculture.

The research team is now working on the final product, a Guidance Document/Manual for Sanitation Safety Plans to assist national and municipal authorities and other users of the WHO guidelines in their application.

During the 2010 Stockholm Water Week, WHO will launch the second edition of the information kit for the WHO safe use of wastewater guidelines (Sunday 5 September 17:45-18:45).

Project documents and the 2006 WHO guidelines are available on the WHO web page on Safe use of wastewater, excreta and greywater.

Greywater use in the Middle East : technical, social, economic and policy issues

Greywater use in the Middle East : technical, social, economic and policy issues
Edited by Stephen McIlwaine and Mark Redwood
Practical Action/CSBE/IDRC 2010
ISBN 978-1-85339-698-4
e-ISBN 978-1-55250-466-6
200 pp.

View online and download full publication

In water-scarce areas of the Middle East, greywater (household wastewater excluding toilet waste) is commonly used by poor communities to irrigate home gardens. This both supplements the water available to the household and improves food security.

This book draws together material presented at a conference in Jordan in 2007, and examines the technical approaches to treating and using greywater for irrigation, including its associated risks to health and the environment. It discusses many of the non-technical issues that influence effectiveness and sustainability of greywater use. It also takes a hard look at economic issues, arguing that more clarity and consistency from policymakers is essential if low-income, water-stressed communities are to make better and safer use of their existing water supplies. The book concludes by offering suggestions for where donor efforts and research could best be focused in the near future.

Greywater use in the Middle East is important reading for researchers, donors, implementing agencies, and policymakers, in the fields of water supply, water reuse, livelihoods and agriculture.