Dawasa handed faecal treatment plants

Dar es Salaam. Dar es Salaam Water and Sewage Authority (Dawasa) has been handed over two decentralised faecal sludge treatment plants (FSTPs) constructed at Mburahati-Ubungo and Miburani-Temeke.
Further, a team of professional service providers has been established to empty and transport the contents of pit-latrines and septic tanks to nearby treatment facility.
Additionally, local government authorities of Ubungo, Temeke and Kinondoni have received capacity development relating to FSM, and the new services were marketed to the nearby community rafiki (friendly toilet) – nyonya kistaarabu (empty your pit in a
smart way).
The project was implemented by BORDA Tanzania and Ifakara Health Institute (IHI), and was funded by UKAID through the Human Development Innovation Fund (HDIF), and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
BORDA project coordinator, Laura Davis said the project aims at addressing sanitation challenges in Dar es Salaam by providing emptying services and treatment facilities for faecal sludge.
“The outcome is that unsanitary practices such as emptying contaminated wastewater into the streets will cease, instances of waterborne diseases will be reduced, and overall community and
environmental health will improve,” she said.
Further she said an additional benefit of these treatment systems is that biogas is generated and can be used for cooking as well as providing an environmentally sustainable alternative to charcoal and wood, and reducing deforestation.

She said that the project, entitled “DEWATS for Dar”, is an innovative project that aims to improve access to sanitation for the urban poor in Dar es Salaam, where 70-90 per cent of the population live in unplanned areas with limited access to basic sanitation services and roads, and where less than 5 per cent of population are connected to sewerage networks.
In such contexts, innovative, alternative and appropriate sanitation solutions are required, such a decentralized wastewater treatment systems (DEWATS) and faecal sludge management (FSM).
The project benefits the communities through the provision of faecal sludge emptying services, and the capacity of the treatment plants can serve up to 70,000 people in the project implementation areas.
Further the availability of trained operators introduce safe and improved methods of pit-emptying through the application of small-scale, innovative emptying equipment and vehicles,  which can provide services in the highly congested and unplanned areas.