Technical Guidance → Emergency sanitation
Emergency sanitation
Sanitation is the safe disposal of excreta, refuse and waste water. Damage to existing sanitation systems or large scale population displacement following a disaster present major health risks and the need for emergency sanitation.
A rapid assessment of sanitation needs and damage to the existing infrastructure is essential, taking into consideration the location (urban or rural), environmental and climatic conditions, and cultural, social and technological context. Participation of the affected population will be needed to ensure effective and appropriate design and subsequent use of the facilities.
Excreta disposal
Prevent defecation in areas likely to contaminate the food chain or water supplies (banks of rivers; upstream from wells; agricultural land).
| Possible alternatives for safe excreta disposal (from Sphere Handbook 2011) |
| Demarcated defecation area (e.g. with sheeted-off segments) |
First phase: the first two to three days when a huge number of people need immediate facilities |
| Trench latrines |
First phase: up to two months |
| Simple pit latrines |
Plan from the start through to long-term use |
| Ventilated improved pit (VIP) latrines |
Context-based for middle- to long-term response (eliminates flies and smell through a chimney) |
| Ecological sanitation (Ecosan) with urine diversion |
Context-based: in response to high water table and flood situations, right from the start or middle to long term (contains and sanitises the waste for fertiliser) |
| Septic tanks |
Middle- to long-term phase. Urban disasters. |
|
Children’s faeces are commonly more dangerous than those of adults. Provide information about safe disposal of infants’ faeces, clothes washing practices and the use of nappies (diapers), potties or scoops for effectively managing safe disposal.
|
Solid waste management
- The collection and disposal of organic and hazardous waste (household, health care, market and industrial waste) are essential to control breeding of vectors and pollution of water sources.
- Hospital/health clinic waste can include sharps, blood, body parts, infectious waste, chemicals, pharmaceuticals etc. and must be handled, stored, treated and disposed of properly, as does the management and/or burial of dead bodies.
|
A vector is a disease-carrying agent (e.g. mosquitoes and other biting insects; rats and mice) which transmit diseases.
Vector-borne diseases can be controlled through e.g. site selection (avoiding where mosquitoes breed), effective excreta disposal and waste management.
|
Drainage
- Surface water can collect in or near settlements from household and water point wastewater, leaking toilets and sewers, rainwater or floodwater.
- It poses risks to health through vector breeding, contamination of drinking water sources, damage to latrines, dwellings, agriculture and the environment and drowning.
- Carefully planned and maintained drainage is needed to control the flow and collection of surface water.
This page was last updated on 24 June 2011