Cities without sewers

In a slum in Kiberia, Kenya, a new invention called Peepoople Kenya (or Peepoo for short) is addressing a mounting sanitation issue from open defecation and lack of clean facilities. The solution is a single-use, biodegradable toilet (via a bag that spreads across a small pot) in new and maintained facilities. Teachers and pupils testify to the cleanliness and usability of the toilets and have even found unexpected benefits as well, like the facilities in a safer location and less time lost from lessons by waiting in line for a latrine.

A wastewater infrastructure crisis in the southern United States is much like those found in far less-developed countries. Now researchers and nonprofits are looking to successes in Africa, in an effort to eradicate obscure diseases and improve quality of life.

Haiti is currently battling the biggest cholera epidemic in recent history caused by lack of access to clean drinking water. Soil is an NGO which delivers dry, compost toilets to peoples’ homes - alternatives to water guzzling flushing toilets, which need infrastructure such as sewers - to help keep sewage from contaminating water sources and provide dignified, safe toilet facilities.

In many rural communities in India, access to clean drinking water is still scarce. The cost of bottled water is prohibitive, city pipes are in poor condition, and the municipal tanker trucks that supply some water are haphazard. But a social business called Sarvajal is busy scaling up a solution: a water ATM. These machines allow people to scan a pre-paid card and withdraw purified water from a stable, convenient source within their community when needed.

Bhutan has committed to eliminating malaria from the country, as in on track to do so thanks in part to the Bhutanese government's consistent persistence to raise public awareness. Arming citizens with mosquito nets, spray and education, the small country has now outpaced India towards this public health goal.

On World Toilet Day in 2014, the Kenyan government promised to build 180 public toilets in an ambitious move to combat the issue of public sanitation. The program went well once the keys were handed off to the National Youth Service of Kenya as a means of income, but issues quickly arose that could not be resolved because of a lack of further funds. The youth has since transformed their toilets into a rental space for local churches, such as Christ Miracle Church for All Nations in Laini Saba.

When Gwadar’s dams ran dry in May 2017, the government began trucking in water. But the solution is costly, the water isn’t clean, and the trucking companies protested in November, claiming they weren’t paid on time. Desalination is an alternative, but it’s expensive too and fatal design flaws have crippled prior attempts at desalination in the province.

Local agencies tasked with controlling disease-spreading organisms are releasing sterile male mosquitoes to help reduce the pest’s population and prevent the spread of dengue. This strategy has decreased the mosquito population by about 82% in parts of Southern California, marking the first time in eight years that the population has declined instead of increased.

Several U.S. cities — and groups like the Clean Hands Collective — are obtaining funding to install public sinks to provide those experiencing homelessness access to better hygiene, thus combating the spread of disease. Some cities, like Portland, have even created portable toilets and other cities are installing public showers as well.

A public campaign is improving access to toilets in Nigerian communities to put a stop to open defecation. These affordable, easy-to-install, plastic toilets have a counterweighted door that ensures an air-tight seal to minimize odor and keep pests away.