Interplay of Climate Change and Sanitation: Understanding Impacts and Solutions

It rained heavily where I live, but when I walked a few kilometers to buy groceries, I found it hadn't rained there. Remember those times when heavy rain was imminent, yet when it didn't rain, it took much longer to arrive? I recall observing similar phenomena as a kid, even witnessing ice pellets falling in my village. Back then, predicting rainy and dry seasons made farming easier. But recently, everything has flipped. Seasons have become unpredictable, delaying rains and bringing sudden, intense downpours that devastate lives and farmlands. When I spoke to my village recently, my uncle lamented, “Our crops are dying. After continuous heavy rain resulting in flooded rivers, a month of drought follows. We can't predict the rain anymore.” This shift is now labelled as climate change. I wonder if my heightened attention is why I notice these changes more vividly. In an interconnected world like ours, the collapse of ecosystems due to ongoing climate change could have devastating impacts on people and communities, as mentioned earlier. The future outlook under business as usual is catastrophic. Fortunately, as a global community, we acknowledge this crisis and are taking steps to address it. The 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is underway in Dubai from November 30 to December 12, 2023. This conference unites global leaders to drive transformative climate actions.

To commemorate COP28, we dedicate this edition of our Eco Insights newsletter to highlight the climate change crisis, and emphasize the critical role of sanitation within it.

Sanitation Sector's Impact on Climate: General Challenges, Solutions and Adaptation Strategies

Climate change encompasses shifts in weather patterns, driven primarily by the excessive release of greenhouse gases (GHGs) like carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), ozone (O3), chlorofluorocarbons (CCl2F2), and water vapor (H2O). These gases trap heat in the Earth's atmosphere, maintaining suitable temperatures for survival. Yet, an imbalance causes drastic climate shifts. CO2 accounts for 76% of human-induced GHGs emissions, with CH4 contributing around 20%. Human activities, such as deforestation, burning, transportation, and waste management, heavily release these gases.

The sanitation sector and its practices, while crucial for public health, can inadvertently add to human-induced GHGs emissions. The impact stems from the way waste is managed, processed, and the associated emissions generated during these processes. Consider human activities associated with critical sanitation value chain such as waste collection, transportation, treatment, and disposal. At the same time, with right sanitation technologies, approaches, and behaviours the sector can add up to reduce emissions drastically. Clearly, choices within this sector can either increase or decrease emissions levels.

Meanwhile, climate change threatens sanitation systems, heightening risks to human, environmental, and economic health. With heavy rains can cause flooding of sanitation technologies such as pit latrines and septic tanks. This leads to pollution of the environment and water resources unhealthy for human consumption. Without rains, it risks unhygienic situations as users may not be able to find water to flush their toilets adequately serving as a centre for spreading diseases, often leading to loss of lives, hospitalisation, and loss of productive economic hours. In terms of economic losses, the World Bank estimated in 2012 that beside loss of families’ productive economic hours, Ghana’s economy loses US$290 million each year due to poor sanitation. Once the sanitation systems are destroyed, it can equally bring risks of sexual assault on women and girls, and missed schooling.

In the remaining part of our article, we offer you an in-depth exploration of how the sanitation sector can contribute negatively to climate change, and positively to its mitigation and adaptation.

Sanitation's Role in Climate Change: Specific Challenges and Environmental Impacts

1. Waste Generation and Methane Emissions - Sanitation systems, mainly wastewater from sewered sanitation systems (definition of sewered systems: uses underground pipes to transport sewage from buildings to treatment plants), produce vast amounts of organic waste. When disposed of in landfills or improperly managed, organic waste undergoes anaerobic decomposition, releasing methane (CH4). CH4 has a significantly higher global warming potential than carbon dioxide over shorter periods, contributing to climate change. It has been estimated that the sanitation sector contributes 7-10% of human-induced CH4 emissions worldwide.
2. Wastewater Treatment and Energy Consumption - Traditional wastewater treatment plants such as municipal sewer plants consume substantial energy for operations, including aeration, pumping, and processing. This reliance on energy often sourced from fossil fuels can result in significant greenhouse gas emissions, particularly carbon dioxide.
3. Deforestation and Water Pollution - Sanitation practices like uncontrolled deforestation for sanitation purposes or the production of unsustainable toilet paper contribute to carbon emissions through the release of stored carbon in trees. Additionally, improper disposal of sanitation by-products such as sewage sludge can contaminate water bodies, impacting aquatic ecosystems and releasing greenhouse gases such as CH4 and nitrous oxide during decomposition processes, contributing to climate change.
4. Untreated Wastewater Discharge and Chemical Fertilizer Application - Did you know that using raw faecal sludge to enrich soil can actually harm it? Surprisingly, it can. But how does this practice indirectly contribute to climate change? When untreated wastewater, laden with various substances including nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus, seeps into the soil, it triggers a cascade of negative effects. These include nutrient imbalances, toxicity to vital soil microorganisms, degradation of soil structure leading to reduced water infiltration and aeration, and contamination by heavy metals such as Chromium. To compensate for nutrient deficiencies caused by untreated wastewater, chemical fertilizers—often derived from fossil fuels—are applied. However, the energy-intensive production and application of these fertilizers contribute significantly to carbon emissions, further exacerbating the climate crisis.

Innovative Sanitation Technologies: Role in Adaptation, Mitigation and Resilience Building

Despite negative impacts, climate-resilient sanitation solutions can counter the adverse effects of these systems on the climate crisis. Implementing decentralized treatment systems, advanced sludge management like composting, and adopting renewable energy sources can cut GHG emissions. Water conservation, eco-friendly tech promotion, and research into low-carbon solutions are key.

Now, let's delve into how WASHKING's eco-smart technologies contribute to climate adaptation, mitigation, and resilience.

1. Adaptation: Navigating Climate Challenges with Transformative Sanitation Access - With limited water and space requirements, WASHKING biodigesters offer a sustainable alternative to conventional septic tanks, crucial in areas vulnerable to erratic climatic conditions. These compact, on-site waste treatment systems facilitate efficient waste management even in regions prone to flooding or extreme weather events, ensuring continued access to safe sanitation amid environmental uncertainties. Furthermore, the offer of opportunity to produce fertilizer from treated waste supports agricultural productivity in climate-affected areas, fostering adaptation in agricultural practices. The digitally-enabled service models, including PAYLOO, PAPLOO, and LOO2OWN, play a pivotal role in ensuring uninterrupted access to sanitation facilities for low-income households. By providing flexible payment options, these models enable users to gradually access and own high-quality sanitation facilities, mitigating financial barriers exacerbated by climate-induced economic vulnerabilities.
2. Mitigation: Reducing Environmental Footprints - At its core, WASHKING's biodigester technology embodies sustainability and climate mitigation. The eco-friendly treatment of human waste within the biodigester under complete aerobic conditions not only eliminates offensive odors but also minimizes greenhouse gas emissions, contributing to mitigating the sector's environmental impact. The utilization of bio-filtration and secondary treatment systems ensures the safe and efficient breakdown of waste, reducing methane emissions and promoting a lower carbon footprint compared to conventional sanitation systems. Additionally, the affordability and accessibility of WASHKING's sanitation facilities reduce the reliance on environmentally detrimental sanitation alternatives, thereby indirectly mitigating the sector's overall environmental burden. By offering a viable and sustainable option at a fraction of the cost of traditional systems, WASHKing drives a significant shift towards environmentally responsible sanitation practices.
3. Resilience Building: Strengthening Communities - WASHKING's innovative service models not only bridge the affordability gap but also foster community resilience. The PAYLOO, PAPLOO, and LOO2OWN services empower low-income households, tenants, and house-owners with reliable and sustainable sanitation solutions. These models provide not just access but also ownership opportunities, enabling households to build assets and secure their sanitation needs without straining their limited financial resources, thereby fostering community resilience against economic shocks induced by climate change. Moreover, the incorporation of after-sales services and routine maintenance ensures the longevity and functionality of the sanitation facilities. Additionally, our work increases the productivity, income and employment situation of local community members and stimulates the local economy through training on high-in-demand skills in construction, carpentry and sales. This proactive approach enhances community resilience by offering continuous support and education on safe sanitation practices, reducing health risks and bolstering overall well-being, particularly in the face of climate-induced health challenges.

Conclusion

In essence, innovative and climate-resilient sanitation solutions like WASHKING's play a pivotal role in climate change adaptation, mitigation, and enhancing community resilience within the sanitation domain. By investing adequately in these technologies, funding further improvements and scalability, and conducting research into their climate-saving capabilities, these solutions not only address immediate sanitation needs but also champion a sustainable, climate-resilient approach. This sets the stage for a paradigm shift in the sanitation sector's response to global environmental challenges.

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