Proper Management of Onsite Sanitation Systems in Zambia

Effective management of onsite sanitation systems in Zambia is critical to protect public health and the environment. Proper maintenance, regular desludging, and safe disposal of waste are important components of onsite sanitation management practices. Additionally, it is important to promote awareness and education among the population on the importance of good hygiene practices and the proper use and maintenance of onsite sanitation systems. Developing and implementing simplified guidelines and regulations for onsite sanitation management can also help to ensure safe and effective waste management practices in Zambia.

The Zambia Environmental Management Agency (ZEMA), established under the Environmental Management Act (EMA) No. 12 of 2011, is the public body responsible for an array of environmental issues, including regulating effluent discharge. In this respect, ZEMA is responsible for issuing waste management licenses to all sanitation service providers (including local authorities) to “reclaim, re-use, recover or recycle waste; collect of dispose of waste; transport waste to a disposal site; own, construct or operate a waste disposal site or transit, trade in or export waste.”

When it comes to feacal disposal in Zambian homes and neighborhoods, the country primarily has two sewer disposal methods: Offsite and Onsite.

1. Offsite has the sewerage reticulation system with pipes and sewer system managed by commercial utility companies.

2. The on-site sanitation system can be divided into two methods: the septic tank and soakaway method and pit latrines.

When pit latrines fill up, many households must empty them because of the lack of space to dig new pits. But whenever space permits especially in rural areas with very low population density and more land available, burying the latrine and building another one somewhere is an acceptable feacal sludge management practice.

Many of the new affluent residential areas that continue to spring up are not getting connected to the sewer system ultimately settling for septic tanks and soakaways.  This creates an environmental hazard if not done correctly as effluent can percolate into the soil and contaminate the groundwater. They can also get flooded during rainy season, leading to environmental contamination and create a scenario where on-site sanitation becomes costly both in direct and opportunity costs. There are also settlements where the ground water table is very high. This makes septic tanks and soakaways unsuitable for on-site sanitation purposes.

This article addresses how a septic tank can be properly built and managed to ensure adherence to environmental concerns.

The common building practice in Zambia is to dig a 3mx3mx3m pit, though it can vary depending on the number of persons that will live in a particular house.  For smaller homes, a smaller tank will be planned, and for bigger housing units like blocks of flats and other multiple dwelling units, a concrete work which will seal the waste into the ground is ideal.

Digging for the storage tank to be underground is ideal because you would not want waste to flow out or mix with other items in the compound like water sources or farms and vegetation as this could lead to contamination and disease outbreaks.

The Zambian building code recommends that sewage tanks and their attached soakaway systems be underground. These soakaway pits are then lined with block work to form the side walls of the tank. Looking at it from the top, you will think it’s a small room being built underground, of course it’s a room, just not rooms for human habitation! We also use reinforced concrete columns to make the corners.

The importance of these columns is for structural integrity and for  prevention of lateral pressure which might bear down on the tank from the top. We also make a middle concrete beam to round the soakaway and septic tanks. These reinforced beams are needed to provide stability.

The next step in the construction of soakaways is the plastering; the plaster work is for the septic tank side, where the effluent is stored. It is important that the effluent will not seep through the tank walls and mix with the ground water in the surrounding areas.

The section of the soakaway where wastewater is meant to seep away is at one side, usually left open in between blocks to slowly let off excess water into the surrounding ground, as opposed to the soakaway where the effluent is supposed to be stored until they degrade.

The decking work on septic tanks is meant to form a rigid cover for the soakaway. That prevents the risk of people or other domestic animals from falling into the pit. The decking will also be reinforced like other decking slabs done in home construction. An opening is then left for the evacuation of waste when it gets filled. It is recommended that septic tanks and soakaway systems be constructed to last for a long time before evacuation, so that the inconvenience of evacuating waste regularly is reduced.

In conclusion, it is imperative that sanitation systems in the country are improved. A standard guide for soakaway construction should be developed and enforced. 

Local authorities and CUs should claim their mandate and guide on where and how to construct septic tanks and soakaways to avoid pollution of groundwater. With population increase and new settlements developing, town planning becomes even more important to ensure that new settlements are properly designed and provide for various social amenities, including fecal sludge management. It is important to ensure every household is connected to a sewer system. As such, onsite sanitation now should be regulated and guided in accordance with the environmental regulations. 

Sanitation Isn't Everyone’s Business. Or Is it??

 The article below 1st appeared in the Zambia Daily Mail Newspaper of 26th November 2022.

“Sanitation is everyone’s business.”

Those were the words of Vice President W.K. Mutale Nalumango as she officially opened the Second Sanitation Summit held in Lusaka on 18^th and 19^th November 2022 under the theme The Sanitation Economy: Making the Invisible Visible.

Organized by the Ministry of Water Development and Sanitation and its partners in the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) sector, the purpose of the summit was to stimulate political and technocratic will on existing commitments made during the First National Sanitation Summit in November 2018 and to accelerate action aimed at improving sanitation and hygiene services for all and ending open defecation by 2030.

Participants were drawn from the Government, Traditional Leadership, the United Nations, Cooperating Partners, Non-Governmental Organizations, academia, private sector, and the media.

The event was deliberately timed to coincide with commemoration of World Toilet Day on 19^th November, a day that reminds us of urgent need to tackle the sanitation crisis. Resolutions from the summit will be codified into a Statement of Action that will help Government and other stakeholders implement the various commitments to improve sanitation in the country. 

Like other UN members, Zambia has signed up to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), all of which have to be attained by 2030. SDG 6 enjoins member countries to ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.

Zambia is behind on this goal of ensuring safe toilets for all by 2030. That is why it is important for all stakeholders in the WASH sector, with strong Government leadership, to implement the various commitments and national strategies to improve the state of sanitation in the country.

Although the United Nations officially recognised access to sanitation as a human right 12 years ago through Resolution 15/9, many people still lack access to safely managed sanitation. Many do not even have a decent toilet of their own. 

Safely managed sanitation is the bedrock to protecting groundwater and positively contributes to good health outcomes. The failure by one household to construct a proper septic tank or pit latrine frustrates not only current aspirations but also the future ability to access clean and safe groundwater.

To achieve progress, all stakeholders should understand their obligations and responsibilities to reach everyone with sanitation services, hence the clarion call by the Vice President that “sanitation is everyone’s business.”

Sanitation is  not just about a clean environment.  The Sanitation Economy has the potential of monetising toilet provision, products and services to provide benefits across businesses and society. This can be done in many ways such as converting faeces to fertilizer and biogas and supporting the entire sanitation value chain.

There are several windows of opportunity for the sanitation subsector.

For instance, taking advantage of the increase in Constituency Development Fund (CDF), local authorities could scale up sanitation efforts and partner with private sector to achieve sustainable service delivery. The increase in CDF thus presents unlimited opportunities for the private sector and local authorities to tackle some of the sanitation challenges communities face.

Most, if not all, of the mushrooming informal settlements in Zambia are not connected to either water or sewerage systems, leaving that to individuals as they construct their houses.

In addition, most families still rely on privately-owned boreholes and shallow wells which – if not properly managed – are often contaminated with raw sewage.

Commercial utility companies have the mandate to inspect and ensure property developers comply with prescribed guidelines in the construction of water and sanitation facilities. However, enforcement remains inadequate and in some cases absent.

Non-traditional markets such as rural areas have for a long time been considered unattractive to private sector due to their perceived lack of profitability. But with appropriate risk management tools, market assessments and linkages, private sector should be encouraged to enter rural markets and provide sanitation services. 

Promoting the sanitation economy is not a zero-sum game but a win–win situation, protecting groundwater against faecal contamination whilst making a livelihood out of it.

Investing in sanitation has positive economic returns like creating jobs and contributing to energizing the economy. Failure to invest in sanitation has a huge negative impact on a nation’s economy through mortality and morbidity arising from diarrheal diseases caused by contaminated groundwater.