‘In the world today more than 2,6 billion of people has no access to basic sanitation. That means that 40 out of 100 person lacks even the most simple latrine to perform their needs. The lack of toilets affects both society and the individual through the contamination of fresh water and ground water. Human faeces contain viruses, bacteria, worms and parasites which kills and infects people with serious diseases. One child in the world dies every 15 seconds due to contaminated water.
The Un Millenium Development Goal 7 Target 10 established in 2002 set up to halve by 2015 the proportion of people without sustainable access to drinking water and sanitation. In figures, that counts for 1,3 billion within 13 years. Unfortunately the progress towards this goal are slow or even negative. One factor is the rapid growth of the number of people living in slums or slum-like conditions.
Now it is 7 years left.
It is obvious that some of the major characteristics and thinking within the sector needs to change in order to accelerate sanitation coverage. Business as usual no longer is the way forward. We have to start Rethinking Sanitation.
Start at the source
The most obvious way to a solution is to start at the source. Prevent disease transmission as soon as possible through rapid inactivation of pathogens direct after defecation. In high density urban areas this means that a project that simply provides latrines cannot even be said to be achieving sustainable toilets.
Offering a choice
At the same time most of those who need sanitation are poor and by this can least afford it and therefore have no other choice than to use what is ready available. By offering a choice and develop and marketing extreme low-cost product innovations can release demand among the poor. Choice is also connected to dignity and status which are of decisive importance for the decision of investing in a toilet.
Economically sustainable
Most toilets are part of larger infrastructural systems and dependent of complex investments and sometimes even institutional changes. A rethinking calls for a soft approach that can handle rapid implementation. At the same time all solutions has to be designed to enabling the growth of economical sustainable service systems in a longer timeframe.
WHOs guiding principles for sanitation
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has established three requirements which must be fulfilled in order for a sanitation system to function for the individual, his/her surroundings and for society in general. These three points are:
1.The need to isolate faeces from the individual
2.To prevent flies and small animals from coming into contact with faeces, in order to prevent contamination
3.Inactivate pathogens in faeces before they are returned to nature
The Peepoo bag
The Peepoo bag is in the form of a slim elongated bag size 14 x 38 cm.
Within the bag there is a thinner gauze that measures 26 x 24 cm. The inside of the Peepoo bags is coated with a thin film of urea. Without sacrificing ergonomic function the bag’s design is adapted in every way so that it might be manufactured at as low a price as possible and sold to the groups with weakest purchasing power in the world.
The Peepoo bag is easy to carry and easy to use. It does´t need any supporting structure, but for convenience a cut PET-bottle can help a lot.
The Peepoo bag is in the form of a slim elongated bag size 14 x 38 cm.
Within the bag there is a thinner gauze that measures 26 x 24 cm. The inside of the Peepoo bags is coated with a thin film of urea. Without sacrificing ergonomic function the bag’s design is adapted in every way so that it might be manufactured at as low a price as possible and sold to the groups with weakest purchasing power in the world.
The Peepoo bag is designed to be used once, sitting, squatting or standing. If one uses it with only the hand, the thin gauze prevents all contact with the excrement. It can also be used by being placed in a cut plastic bottle or small bucket and acting approximately as a chamber pot.
The Peepoo bag is a toilet which is not fixed to a particular place. It is simple to carry since it is small and weighs less than 10 grams. The only thing one needs to do is find a secluded spot where one can use it as a toilet.
Peepoo bags are odor free for at least 24 hours after use and can thus be stored in the immediate environment.
Peepoo bag is one of few sanitation solutions which require no water. The only water required is to wash the hands after use. This means that the traditional link between water and sanitation has been cut.A used Peepoobag is clean to handle. It has become a waste that neither smell nor is dirty to take care of and collect.’
More: www.peepoople.com.
