The guidelines and toolbox presented in the GTZ ecosan source book aim to address the needs and interests of initiators, planners, practitioners and other stakeholders in the preparation and implementation of ecological sanitation (ecosan) projects. This process should be participation oriented, including all stakeholders. The GTZ ecosan approach aims to supply these groups with methods, material, information and ideas as to how they structure the working steps of a particular project (WERNER et al. 2003).
A number of good participatory approaches have been developed to be used for the implementation of conventional sanitation projects, which could be adapted to some extend for ecosan projects. However, ecosan, as a holistic approach goes far beyond the scope of these conventional projects, as it recognises human excreta and water not as a waste but as a resource to be exploited. Issues such as the agricultural reuse of recyclates, the social and logistic aspects, the role of public service providers and the adapting of sanitation facilities to the needs of the user must all be included in the considerations of an ecosan project.
The GTZ ecosan source book (WERNER et al. 2003) presents an approach for planning, preparing and implementing ecosan projects. It is based on current knowledge and thinking in the sanitation sector regarding requirements for sustainable solutions. These ten implementation steps are presented together with a description of ecosan projects, stakeholders involved and a number of tools that can be used by practitioners.
The GTZ approach is based on the household centred environmental sanitation approach (HCES), developed by the Environmental Sanitation Working Group of WSSCC (EAWAG 2005). This adaptation of the HCES approach for ecosan projects is described as follows:
Step 0 – Raising Awareness
- Activities: advocacy; lobbying; information provision; demand creation.
- Output: increased awareness of the ecosan philosophy and systems, demand for ecosan.
- See also awareness raising.
Step 1 – Request for Assistance
- Activities: formulation of request.
- Output: request formulated and submitted to relevant party.
Step 2 – Launch of Planning and Consultative Process
- Activities: facilitation including identification of all relevant stakeholders; information on planning process and ecosan; active participation in workshop.
- Output: start-up workshop report; agreement among stakeholders on the working procedure, their tasks, roles and means, and the project boundaries.
- See also stakeholder analysis starting by the stakeholder identification factsheet.
Step 3 – Assessment of Current Status
- Activities: participatory development of terms of reference; investigation of status quo; elaboration of reports; present findings of investigation; correct possible factual errors.
- Output: report on status quo.
Step 4 – Assessment of (User) Priorities
- Activities: establish ground rules for step 5 (priorities, levels of service, institutional arrangements, cultural acceptability etc.).
- Output: ground rules for the identification of options.
- See also baseline data collection.
Step 5 – Identification of Options
- Activities: elaboration of adequate ecosan solutions; elaboration of reports
- Output: report on suitable ecosan options.
- See the implementation tools section or the whole section on decision making.
Step 6 – Evaluation of Feasible Service and Reuse Options
- Activities: participatory determination of feasible service and reuse combinations; decision making workshop.
- Output: decision on continuation or termination and on service/reuse combinations.
- See also decision making.
Step 7 – Consolidated Ecosan Plans for Project Area
- Activities: assembling and integrating service & reuse combinations into a broader water supply, sanitation and reuse framework.
- Output: Consolidated ecosan plan for entire project area.
Step 8 – Finalising Consolidated Ecosan Plans for the Study Area
- Activities: presentation and approval of assembled plans.
- Output: approved ecosan plans.
- See - e.g. - stakeholder strategy plan.
Step 9 – Implementation
- Activities: elaboration of technical and implementation plans; decision on infrastructure; tendering; financial support; hardware investment; provision of equipment; construction; training & advice to users and service providers; use of sanitary system; maintenance; collection, treatment; storage, transport; reuse of recyclates; marketing of recyclates.
- Output: sustainable, user oriented closed-loop sanitary system.
- See also project implementation.
Ongoing monitoring, evaluation and feedback (MEF) activities are extremely important in an ecosan programme. These should be performed throughout the entire process, beginning in the awareness raising phase, with the activities and results being monitored and evaluated.
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Most approaches to date were developed for programmes dealing with conventional systems of water supply and sanitation. They hence fail to address issues which are of vital importance in ecosan programmes, such as the hygienic reuse of recyclates from household sewage in agriculture, and the needs of the users of the recyclates. The GTZ ecosan project steps aim to tackle these issues. It helps planners to adopt a participatory process that should result in a wider acceptance of the chosen system and its sustainability.
The GTZ-ecosan project steps can be applied in a rich variety of contexts and in different framework conditions. It is particularly helpful in sanitation projects that have a strong focus on recharge and reuse.
Planning and Implementation of Ecological Sanitation Projects
This presentation gives an introduction to HCES and the Bellagio principles, focussing on stakeholder participation and introducing the GTZ Ecosan project steps. Furthermore, some ecosan pilot projects are presented, and challenges for further implementation highlighted.
WERNER, C. KLINGEL, F. MANG, H. P. BRACKEN, P. PANESAR, A. (2005): Planning and Implementation of Ecological Sanitation Projects. Eschborn: Ecological Sanitation Programme of the German Agency for Technical Cooperation (GTZ)An Ecosan Source Book for the Preparation and Implementation of Ecological Sanitation Projects
This document presents the GTZ ecosan project steps in more detail. Though the source book is only available in a draft version it contains important information on the project steps.
WERNER, C. PANESAR, A. BRACKEN, P. MANG, H. P. HUBA-MANG, E. GEROLD, A. (2003): An Ecosan Source Book for the Preparation and Implementation of Ecological Sanitation Projects. Eschborn: German Agency for Technical Cooperation (GTZ) GmbH. [Accessed: 05.04.2010] PDFHousehold-Centred Environmental Sanitation, Implementing the Bellagio Principles in Urban Environmental Sanitation – Provisional Guideline for Decision Makers
This guideline for decision-makers has been developed to provide first guidance on how to implement the Bellagio Principles by applying the HCES approach. Assistance is given to those willing to include and test this new approach in their urban environmental sanitation service programmes. Since practical experience with the HCES approach is lacking, this guideline is neither comprehensive nor final, but will have to be developed further on the basis of extensive field experience. Available in English, French and Spanish.
EAWAG (2005): Household-Centred Environmental Sanitation, Implementing the Bellagio Principles in Urban Environmental Sanitation – Provisional Guideline for Decision Makers. Geneva, Switzerland: Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology URL [Accessed: 17.06.2019]The Enabling Environment for Implementing the Millennium Development Goals: Government Actions to Support NGOs.
Household-Centred Environmental Sanitation, Implementing the Bellagio Principles in Urban Environmental Sanitation – Provisional Guideline for Decision Makers
This guideline for decision-makers has been developed to provide first guidance on how to implement the Bellagio Principles by applying the HCES approach. Assistance is given to those willing to include and test this new approach in their urban environmental sanitation service programmes. Since practical experience with the HCES approach is lacking, this guideline is neither comprehensive nor final, but will have to be developed further on the basis of extensive field experience. Available in English, French and Spanish.
EAWAG (2005): Household-Centred Environmental Sanitation, Implementing the Bellagio Principles in Urban Environmental Sanitation – Provisional Guideline for Decision Makers. Geneva, Switzerland: Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology URL [Accessed: 17.06.2019]Capacity Building for Ecological Sanitation
This publication deals with the educational aspects linked to ecologically sustainable sanitation, and contains extensive chapters on capacity building and knowledge management in the field of ecological sanitation.
UNESCO/IHP ; GTZ (2006): Capacity Building for Ecological Sanitation. Paris & Eschborn: German Agency for Technical Cooperation (GTZ) & International Hydrological Programme of UNESCO (UNESCO/IHP) URL [Accessed: 15.04.2019]An Ecosan Source Book for the Preparation and Implementation of Ecological Sanitation Projects
This document presents the GTZ ecosan project steps in more detail. Though the source book is only available in a draft version it contains important information on the project steps.
WERNER, C. PANESAR, A. BRACKEN, P. MANG, H. P. HUBA-MANG, E. GEROLD, A. (2003): An Ecosan Source Book for the Preparation and Implementation of Ecological Sanitation Projects. Eschborn: German Agency for Technical Cooperation (GTZ) GmbH. [Accessed: 05.04.2010] PDFSuccess Stories of Sustainable Sanitation Initiatives in India by ESF
ESF is working in the diversified sectors in rural, peri-urban and urban areas focusing on the agricultural sector, schools, communities, the Eco-village project, sanitation plans for pilgrimage towns and upcoming projects in local government bodies with a participatory approach and cost effective sustainable sanitation solutions. This document shows some examples.
THAKUR, P. PANSE, D. ESF (n.y): Success Stories of Sustainable Sanitation Initiatives in India by ESF. Pune: Ecosan Services Foundation (ESF). [Accessed: 22.06.2011] PDFLarge Scale Ecosan Capacity Building Project in India
In this paper, a large scale Ecosan capacity building project for introducing the Ecosan approach to several target groups in India is described.
PANSE, D. HEEB, J. SATISH, S. ESF (2007): Large Scale Ecosan Capacity Building Project in India. (= UNESCO-IHP Symposium ). Pune: Ecosan Services Foundation (ESF). [Accessed: 22.06.2011] PDFSustainable Sanitation Practises Integrating Water and Health
This document is about Ecosan, as a solution to sanitation problems concerning health and contaminated water.
SATISH, S. THAKUR, P. PATANGE, P. ESF (n.y): Sustainable Sanitation Practises Integrating Water and Health. Pune: Ecosan Services Foundation (ESF). [Accessed: 22.06.2011] PDFThe Ecosan Source Book, Tool Box and Data Sheet-GTZ Information Support for Ecological Sanitation.
This presentation gives an introduction to the ecosan source book and toolbox and how it should be used.
WERNER, C. KLINGEL, F. BRACKEN, P. (2005): The Ecosan Source Book, Tool Box and Data Sheet-GTZ Information Support for Ecological Sanitation.. Eschborn: Ecological Sanitation Programme of the German Agency for Technical Cooperation (GTZ).Planning and Implementation of Ecological Sanitation Projects
This presentation gives an introduction to HCES and the Bellagio principles, focussing on stakeholder participation and introducing the GTZ Ecosan project steps. Furthermore, some ecosan pilot projects are presented, and challenges for further implementation highlighted.
WERNER, C. KLINGEL, F. MANG, H. P. BRACKEN, P. PANESAR, A. (2005): Planning and Implementation of Ecological Sanitation Projects. Eschborn: Ecological Sanitation Programme of the German Agency for Technical Cooperation (GTZ)EcoSanRes (ecological sanitation research)
Official web page of the Ecological Sanitation Research Programme (EcoSanRes). The EcosanRes Programme aims to develop and promote sustainable sanitation in the developing world through capacity development and knowledge management as a contribution to equity, health, poverty alleviation, and improved environmental quality. It contains numerous helpful publications, and also allows you to gain access to the ecosanres discussion forum, currently the most active discussion forum on ecological sanitation.
Sustainable Sanitation Alliance (SuSanA)
The official website of the Sustainable Sanitation Alliance SuSanA. SuSanA is a loose network of a number of organizations active in the field of sanitation, founded in 2007. The goals and objectives of SuSanA are to contribute to the achievement of the MDGs, to raise awareness on what sustainable sanitation solutions are and to promote them on a larger scale. The website contains a number of Factsheets by the different SuSanA working groups on various subjects related to sustainable sanitation. There is section where everyone can upload important documents.