In the spring of 2013 I followed the course Managing Urban Environmental Infrastructure at Wageningen University. As part of the work my group developed a possible scenario for the development of the sanitation infrastructure in slums. The following part was written and developed by Willem van Erp, Sabine de Groot, Priska Prasetya, Ivar Roefs and myself.
The development of the infrastructure will be demonstrated using figures. The first figure shows the location of the waste facility installation in blue. This installation is flexible and capacity can be expanded. The grey blocks surrounding the installation represent slum house blocks. In the second figure the blue dots show the users of the toilet facilities and the treatment installation. The third figure shows that over time more people will start to use the facilities and the treatment and the installation is adapted for more capacity.
The next stage of the change in infrastructure, in figure 4, shows that people living at a longer distance from the installation are collecting the waste at a central point and it is treated at the community installation. The installation is further adapted for an even bigger capacity. This continues until the installation is at full design capacity and all neighbours are using the treatment facility according to the plan, which is shown in the fifth figure. The sixth figure shows how the nearest houses are being connected to the installation via an underground sewage pipe. Based on low poverty rate and higher economic development in the region, people area able to improve their houses. Possibly some people moved and other people have made their houses larger. In this stage of development, people prefer their private restroom and can afford to be connected. This connection to the installation will be in accordance with the development of the electric net and data net and will be planned to happen in the best possible manner.
The final figures show that the connection of the area will happen in a step-by-step process until the whole neighbourhood is connected to the treatment facility. The development of the infrastructure goes hand in hand with the economic development. Jobs are created in this design and the design allows implementation of other aspects of development like education in the community building, fight against hunger by allowing cooking facilities and providing nutrients for urban farming and even education on health issues.
