Principles: What Is Agricultural Reuse in Terms of Ecosan

Principles
Based on ecological principles that material moves in flows and cycles rather than in linear patterns,
such as end-of-pipe technologies, ecosan aims to interrupt the life cycles of pathogens while
approaching excreta and wastewater as a resource. This approach aims to sanitise the waste
products and apply a ‘health orientated multi-barrier concept of treatment, crop-restriction and
exposure control’1.
The ecosan approach is an alternative to conventional sanitation systems. It is based on an overall

view of material flows as part of an ecologically and economically sustainable sanitation system,
tailored to the needs of the users and specific to local conditions. It does not promote a specific
technology, but is a philosophy in handling waste substances. It requires a new approach to
sanitation education and knowledge management.
Ecosan systems restore the natural balance between the quantity of nutrients excreted by one
person in a year, and that required to produce their food (7.5kg nitrate, phosphorous and potassium
is used to produce 250kg of rice (UNESCO, 2006))and so saves limited resources. In particular this
refers to fresh water and mineral resources, for example extractable reserves of phosphorous are at
risk of being exhausted in the near future.
The core principle of ecosan is to close the loop between sanitation and agriculture, enabling and
bringing about ‘agricultural reuse’, along with other means of closing flow cycles (UNESCO, 2006).
Ecosan is not a specific technology it is a philosophy of recycling resources and can offer modern,
convenient, gender balanced and desirable solutions.
What is agricultural reuse in terms of ecosan
The ecosan approach strives to close the nutrient loop between sanitation and agriculture, enabling
recovery of the nutrients, organic material and water discharged in conventional sanitation systems.
By closing the nutrient loop organic material contributes to soil fertility and improving water
retention while providing an alternative to chemical fertilizers.
In ecosan agricultural reuse refers to a number of options, not just traditional agriculture, such as
farmers fields, but forestry, aquaculture, market gardening and horticulture. It also considers the
reuse of grey water and the nutrients from the organic content of wastewater and energy.
Ecosan systems
Commonly ecosan systems separately collect and treat faeces, urine and grey water this reduces the
volume of drinking water needed to flush excreta. This also allows the different characteristics of
each material to be fully utilised. The diagram demonstrates the separation of substances and
possible ecosan treatments (UNESCO, 2006).
1
Adapted from Capacity building for ecological sanitation, UNESCO
Commonly reuse of urine and faeces is found in agriculture, urine as a direct fertiliser and faeces as
organic matter for soil improvement, other reuse options also exist. Grey water, once treated, has
application for toilet flushing, industry or groundwater recharge. Organic material can also be used
for biogas production for domestic or industrial purposes.
Processes (Closing the loop)

The ecosan processes utilise the appropriate treatment and handling of materials during the whole
process and reuse to ensure health is not compromised and sanitation levels are well maintained.
Through anaerobic composting, dehydration, stabilisation and anaerobic digestion, depending on
the local situation, waste can be transformed. This allows the organics and nutrients in faeces to
become concentrates and hygienically safe in a dry fertiliser, compost or fluid fertiliser. Depending
on the treatment method energy can also be produced if desired through biogas after anaerobic
digestion.
Technologies
Diverse technologies can be used for ecosan, ranging from high-tech to simple low-tech options.
Current options include Urine Diversion (UD) dry toilets, water saving vacuum sewage systems, to
membrane technology which separates material for treatment and decontamination. The focus in
ecosan technology selection is the appropriateness of the system, which usually, but not always,
involves decentralised systems.
The use of modular facilities allows for flexibility and adaptation of components for the local
situation, optimising contributions to the social, economic, ecological and climatic conditions. Ecosan
also calls upon innovative institutional arrangements, financial mechanisms and logistical
arrangements, to ensure the process run smoothly. New schemes may need to establish new
enterprises and so can help with income generating schemes.
Technology options do not need completely new elements but can utilise existing options, it
depends on the context and use of the project.
Essential technological components used in eco san2
Specific Technologies
The most common ecosan technologies available relate to sanitation and latrines. There is ongoing
debate about their potential in emergency response situations, currently organisations are
conducting research into their possible application to see if the benefits outweigh the costs.
Technical briefs on ecosan technologies can be downloaded from the GTZ website
http://www.gtz.de/en/themen/umwelt-infrastruktur/wasser/9397.htm they explain the systems
and how to implement them for development, peri-urban and urban situations.
Treatment options for on/off site systems
2
GTZ image found at http://www.sansed.uni-bonn.de/download/en-ecosan-capacity-building-material-
2006.pdf
Implementation
Ecosan projects rely on participation from the community without this the project will almost
certainly be a failure due to the inputs necessary from the users. One such approach is the
Household Centred Environmental Sanitation Approach (HCES) (Eawag, 2009). Simply this tries to
make ecosan a user based system attempting to use on site systems as much as possible. It also
promotes the idea of completing the cycle, recycling and reuse of waste.
The ‘ecosan project steps’ – key moment, necessary activities and expected results3
3
Taken from GTZ material available from http://www.sansed.uni-bonn.de/download/en-ecosan-capacity-
building-material-2006.pdf

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Principles

The ecosan approach is an alternative to conventional sanitation systems. It is based on an overall

What is agricultural reuse in terms of ecosan

Processes (Closing the loop)

Treatment options for on/off site systems

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