SANITATION PROJECT: INDONESIA
Title: Ecologically safe toilets for the Tsunami affected communities in Meulaboh and Banda Aceh, Indonesia
Location: Meulaboh and Banda Aceh, Indonesia
Duration: July 2006 - August 2008
Background
On December 26, 2004, an earthquake caused by one of the most devastating tsunami in Asia, tore down a great deal of infrastructure along the coast of the province of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam (Aceh), Indonesia. Strategic infrastructure like water supplies were severely damaged and the homes of almost 200,000 families were destroyed.
 As early as 2005, the Government of Indonesia advised all housing construction agencies regarding their responsibilities for on-site water and sanitation on their project sites. The post-tsunami reconstruction program includes an upgrade of living conditions involving the establishment of appropriate and sustainable sanitary facilities. The Government provided technical specifications for septic tanks and post treatment in the form of leach fields as the minimum acceptable standard (Badan Standarisasi Nasional 2002). While this is a positive development, there are many challenges related to septic tank discharge in densely populated areas with very high water tables and frequent flooding. Health and technical issues related to failing and poorly maintained septic tank systems in Aceh are major concerns both for the housing agencies and the Indonesian Health Authorities.
WTO Response
In 2006, World Toilet Organization (WTO) embarked on a 2-year project to introduce alternatives to better address the challenges caused by the tsunami in the region. Known as ‘Ecologically safe toilets for the Tsunami affected communities in Meulaboh and Banda Aceh, Indonesia’, the project was funded by the Tidal Waves Asia Fund (TWAF) and managed by The Red Cross Society of Singapore.
Its objective is to provide sustainable systems for tsunami-affected communities in at least 13 sites in Meulaboh and Banda Aceh and aims to restore normalcy in the daily lives of families, children and communities while introducing the concept of ecological sanitation. These sites have been identified by the Indonesia Toilet Association (ATI) and BRR and include focal points like community centres, mosques, schools, and civic halls as well as orphanages, kindergarten and recreation areas.
In the process of setting up permanent sustainable sanitation infrastructure, the project trains local engineers, architects, contractors, and communities, and strengthens their capacity to design, construct and maintain environmentally sound and sustainable sanitation systems. It also addresses the need to spread knowledge and create demand for sanitation through a community-level awareness campaign.
 
Neusu Park Pilot Project
One of the 13 locations selected to set up a community sustainable sanitation system is Neusu Park. Neusu Park is a green public utility area with sporting facilities such as a football ground, lawn tennis courts, basketball court and a small park. This park was selected as an important place of recreation for tsunami traumatized people and is used by a wide range of people. An average of about 150 people visit the park on weekdays and this number doubles on weekends. It also hosts various sporting and other public events. A canteen also operates in the Park area providing visitors snacks and drinks.
The WTO Field team conducted feasibility and pre-assessment studies in which different stakeholders, park users and people from the neighbourhood were consulted to determine the most suitable type of toilet and treatment system in the area. Considering all the inputs from different sources and factors affecting the daily activities of the park, it was decided that the men’s toilet would need two urinals and one handicapped cubicle while the women’s toilet would have three cubicles, with one of the cubicles designated for the handicapped.
After consultation with sanitation experts from Germany, India and China, the design chosen for the treatment system includes a biogas plant (anaerobic reactor) for pre-treatment followed by a post-treatment stage using a French Drain system (anaerobic filter) and a vegetated garden.
 
As part of the project, a two week Sustainable Sanitation Course was conducted at University Syiah Kuala, Banda Aceh. The 36 participants selected with assistance from BRR included a mix of engineers, contractors, architects, builders, students and end-user community representatives. The course aimed to raise awareness and provide an overview of ecological sanitation systems focusing on the following key areas:
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The current status of sanitation in the area;
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Ecological sanitation: concepts and experiences;
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‘On the job’ training in the selection, designing and construction of ecological toilet and sanitation systems; and
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Operation and maintenance of ecological sanitation systems. 
Stakeholder groups including various community representatives, local government officials and the BRR were identified from each of the 13 project locations to carry out sanitation awareness through discussions and informal meetings. Some stakeholders also participated in the Sustainable Sanitation Course to gain technical training in operation and maintenance issues in order to ensure on-going system operation by the community. The participants of stakeholder meetings and the training course were asked to explore social and cultural practices and their relevance to the selection of appropriate technologies. The role and importance of sanitation were explored through the use of participatory tools as well as videos, posters and other media.
IMPACT
After a year of preparation, training and construction, the biogas plant and toilet facilities were commissioned in February 2007. The responsibility for management and maintenance of the facilities was officially handed over to Jasdam (military), who acknowledged the importance of the facilities in serving the community. Biogas production started a week after the commissioning of the plant and the gas is presently being used for cooking in the park’s canteen. The plant has completed a year of operation, and is functioning well, with enough biogas to cook for over two hours each day. The project location was used as one of the case studies for participants in a Sanitation Seminar organized by the German Development Cooperation Agency (GTZ) and UNICEF and as a study site for the participants of the Sustainable Sanitation Course.
 
The pilot project at Neusa Park was a good entry point for bringing alternative sanitation options to the public’s attention. Having raised some awareness and interest, people are curious to know what other ecological sanitation options exist and which would be most suitable for them. This is important since it is known that all sanitation systems are not applicable for all locations, and various environmental and societal issues will determine the type of toilet and treatment system that is most appropriate.
Of course, a public toilet project cannot hope to solve the pressing sanitation problems faced by most Acehnese. The project has provided the opportunity for local people and the training course participants to see and experience several different ecological sanitation options which can prevent pollution of groundwater and land that are affordable and do not pose any cultural threat.
As WTO continues project implementation in the 12 other project locations, there is the continuing challenge of raising awareness about sanitation, and ecological sanitation, in Aceh. Ecological sanitation, with its numerous options, provides people the opportunity to adapt new technologies to the difficult sanitation situations they face. WTO hopes to continue to build awareness and interest in new sanitation options in Aceh. It is currently exploring the possibility of setting up a permanent training and capacity building centre for sanitation in Aceh, since the sanitation problems faced by Acehnese will require significantly more improvement at the local level.
 Read more about the Case Study on the Indonesia Project
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