South Africa is a water-scarce country (Otieno and Ochieng, 2004; Wassung, 2010). The current sanitation system mostly used in South African urban areas depends on extensive use of water in a form of flush toilets. The housing sector in major cities is continuously growing and this is putting a strain on water services. The government has explored a range of sanitation technologies including waterborne, the Ventilated Improved (VIP) toilet and ecological sanitation (widely known as ecosan) in a form of a urine diversion dry (UDD) toilet. The latter provides a reasonable solution to the current sanitation challenge. This study explores the perceptions of the users of the UDD toilets installed in the medium density mixed housing development of Hull Street in Kimberley. Understanding the users’ socio-cultural perceptions of the UDD toilet will contribute to future policy making, as the information can be used to improve the future roll-out of the technology in order to make it more acceptable. The study was qualitative in nature and used a phenomenological research design. The sample size comprised 16 participants, 13 of whom were residents of the Hull Street housing project and three were employees of the Sol Plaatje Housing Company (SPHC). The sample was selected by a purposive sampling method. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to collect data for the study. The data was analysed by means of content analysis, which enabled the researcher to identify important themes for the study. The findings of the study revealed dissatisfaction regarding the use of the UDD toilet, which emanates from poor design of the toilet facility. The research was successful in identifying, inter alia, odour, uncomfortable sitting position on the toilet mainly by female users and high cost of operating and maintaining the sanitation system. Recommendations emphasise the importance of involving users in future UDD sanitation projects and educating the public at large about sustainability aspects of this sanitation technology (UDD). One of the key lessons drawn from the study is that challenges experienced by the users should be used to improve future UDD toilets.

Unsafe sanitation systems poses a risk for pathogen transmission, wherefore it is important to both inactivate pathogens present in human excreta and conduct safe sanitation systems from use to end-use. The Peepoo toilet, using ammonia sanitisation, have been suggested as a low-cost sanitation solution and is implemented in schools in Kibera, an urban slum in Kenya. This master thesis aim to study the inactivation efficiency of ammonia sanitisation when treating human excreta with urea, and to quantify the risks of exposure to microbial hazards from the Peepoo sanitation system using faecal indicator bacteria. Excreta was collected from four schools in Kibera. After adding urea to mimic the inactivation of the Peepoo in the laboratory, the inactivation rate was correlated to temperature and free ammonia concentration for Campylobacter spp., Escherichia coli and Enterococcus spp.. Campylobacter spp. and E. coli both had a high inactivation rate even at low temperature and low addition of urea. Inactivation rate of Enterococcus spp. was lower and close to zero when 1.87 % urea was added for 15 °C. For Enterococcus spp. a lag-phase was observed, which was not affected by temperature but by concentration of free ammonia. For investigated bacteria, inactivation rate increased with increased temperature and free ammonia concentration. Along the Peepoo management chain, several hazardous events were identified such ascontamination during usage, handling and transportation. Sampling showed a higher contamination of Enterococcus spp. than of E. coli. Enterococcus spp. was used as a faecal indicator for Ascaris and E. coli was used as an indicator of E. coli O157:H7 in a quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA). Through the QMRA, the risk of infection of Ascaris and E. coli O157:H7 for one exposure event was simulated based on a Exponential and a Beta-Poisson dose-response model respectively. The risk of infection of Ascaris was around 12 % regardless of where exposure occurs, if Ascaris eggs were present. For risk for infection with E. coli O157, the simulated risks were below 10 % at almost all exposure points, with most of the high risk exposure points located in the schools. There are risks of pathogen transmission in the Peepoo management chain that should be further investigated. Ammonia sanitisation permits a high degree of microbial inactivation but to secure a safe end-product it is recommended to be kept in room temperature (24.05±0.62 °C) or higher.

La presente tesis "estudio de los efectos sobre el medio litoral derivados de la implantación de saneamientos integrales en la costa Cantábrica" pretende evaluar la validez de los diseños ambientales de estos saneamientos integrales como instrumentos predictivos aplicables a la gestión de la calidad de los sistemas acuáticos litorales mediante la realización de estudios dirigidos a analizar la afección que originan los vertidos de aguas tratadas a través del emisario submarino sobre el estado de las aguas costeras, sobre la calidad de los fondos sedimentarios y sobre las comunidades bentónicas establecidas; así como, mediante el análisis de la evolución de la calidad de las masas de agua estuarinas afectadas por los vertidos de tormenta. Los resultados obtenidos han servido para proponer una serie de indicaciones para el diseño de los programas de control operativo planteados en la DMA, a aplicar en las masas de agua afectadas por este tipo de vertidos. / This PhD thesis titled "Effects of coastal sanitations on Cantabrian littoral ecosystems (Bay of Biscay)" was carried out to evaluate the applicability of the environmental design of the sewer systems constructed in the north of Spain to the management of the aquatic ecosystems. This work has analysed the effects caused by the treated effluents discharged by the submarine outfall on the water and sediment quality and on the structure and composition of the hard-bottom benthic communities dwelling the outfall surroundings. On the other hand this study has analysed the recovery of the estuarine ecosystem (water, bacteriology, sediments and benthic organisms) directly affected in the past by the urban effluents and nowadays affected by storm discharges. Results obtained in both surveys have contributed to propose a guidance for the design of the Operative control of the water masses established in the EU Water Framework Directive in the north of Spain.

Av samtliga globala processer som reglerar jordsystemet är de biogeokemiska flödena av kväve (N) och fosfor (P) mest påverkade av mänskliga aktiviteter. Inerta former av N och P omvandlas till reaktiva former som sprids i miljön, där de orsakar eutrofiering och påverkar marina ekosystem negativt. Majoriteten av de reaktiva N- och P-formerna används för framställningen av mineralgödsel. Ett alternativt sätt att producera gödsel är att återvinna näringsämnena i avloppet. En teknik som återvinner näringsämnen i urin är basisk urintorkning. Teknologin stabiliserar urea med ett basiskt torkningsmedium och koncentrerar näringsämnena genom att evaporera vattnet i urinen. Slutprodukten är ett torrt gödsel i pulverform. I det här projektet testades urintorkningsteknologin för första gången i ett fältförsök. Ett system för urintorkning med kapacitet att förånga 40 kg urin dygn-1 m-2 konstruerades och integrerades i ett befintligt torrt sanitetssystem för användning under en period på tre månader. I projektet utvärderades 13 dygn av de 3 månaderna. Resultaten visade att 24 kg urin tillfördes systemet och att systemet kunde upprätthålla en kontinuerlig torkning av urinen. Efter torkningen återvanns majoriteten (97 %) av N i slutprodukten. På grund av att den tillförda mängden urin var liten blev växtnäringshalterna i slutprodukten och i torrsubstansen (TS) av slutprodukten låga. Systemet hade emellertid potential att torka mycket större kvantiteter urin. Om systemets fulla potential hade använts, det vill säga att torka 40 kg urin dygn-1 m-2, så hade särskilt N- och P-halterna ökat avsevärt. N-halterna hade även ökat ytterligare om torkningen hade utförts vid en lägre temperatur. Systemets energiförbrukning var hög, eftersom systemet hade en kontinuerlig energikonsumtion och även komponenter med hög effekt. I jämförelse med den konventionella avloppsvattenreningen och produktionen av mineralgödsel har systemet en hög energikonsumtion, men i jämförelse med en förbränningstoalett är systemets energiförbrukning likvärdig. För att minska energiförbrukningen kunde reglertekniska åtgärder utföras så att systemets energitillförsel upphör när systemet inte används. Systemets energiförbrukning får även ställas i relation till de problem som dagens system för livsmedelsproduktion och sanitet medför. Till skillnad från nämnda system möjliggör urintorkningsteknologin besparing av dricksvattenresurser, ett slutet kretslopp av näringsämnen och en minskad påverkan på miljön. / Of all global processes that regulate the earth system, the biogeochemical flows ofnitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) are the most affected by human activities. Inert forms of N and P are converted into reactive forms that are dispersed in the environment, causing eutrophication and affecting marine ecosystems. The majority of the reactive N and P are used for the production of mineral fertilizers. An alternative way of producing fertilizers is to recycle nutrients from waste water. A technology that reuses nutrients in urine is alkaline urine drying. The technology stabilizes urea with an alkaline drying medium and concentrates the nutrients by evaporating the water in urine. The end-product is a dry fertilizer in powder form. In this master project, the alkaline urine drying technology was tested for the first time in field conditions. A system for urine drying with the capacity to evaporate 40 kg of urine day-1 m-2 was constructed and integrated into an existing dry sanitation system for use over a period of three months. The master project evaluated the system for 13 days of the 3 months. The results showed that 24 kg of urine was collected in the system, significantly less than what the system had been designed to dry. Furthermore, the results showed that the system functioned smoothly recovering 97 % of the urine-N in the end-product. The nutrient content in the end-product and the dry matter of the end-product was low due to the low amount of urine that was collected. However, the system had the potential to dry much larger quantities of urine. If the system would have been operated to function at full potential (drying 40 kg of urine day-1 m-2) the N- and P-content in the end-product would be much higher than that observed during the 13 days. Furthermore, the system if operated at lower temperatures has the potential to recover more N. The system’s energy consumption was high, as the system had a continuous energy consumption. In comparison with the conventional waste water treatment and the production of mineral fertilizers, the system has a high energy consumption, but compared to an incineration toilet, the system’s energy consumption is equivalent. In order to reduce the energy consumption, automatic control could be implemented so that the energy is switched off when the system is not used. The system’s energy consumption may also be set in relation to the problems that today’s systems for food production and sanitation entail. Unlike the aforementioned systems, the urine dehydration technology does not consume drinking water, it enables recycling of nutrients as well as a reduced impact on aquatic life.