Toilets are vital to any home. But what happens to all the output that go via drainage pipes? Aren't they let out into the water bodies or sea? Is that the best way to manage our waste?
India still has 597 million people defecating in the open. But the waste generated by them, when let out on the earth decomposes and even provides manure for plants to grow.
So which system is better? Having toilets and polluting water bodies, or not having toilets and defecating in the open?
Neither.
The problem with cities is: There is no space or free land where human waste can be left to decomposed. The problem with villages is: There is not enough resources to build toilets and maintain them. There is also another problem: The perennial shortage of water.
These problems can be tackled effectively with one solution: Renewable Energy-based toilets that recycle urine/feces to create manure (reducing waste at source), and automatically release the optimum water after every use to utilize just the right amount of water that is needed.
Renewable Energy-based toilets exist today: Have a look at this and this. I also saw a compostable toilet designed and sold by The Rain Center, Chennai.
So, at least in outskirts of the cities (where there is no drainage facilities) and in small towns/rural areas, why not build renewable energy-powered toilets that can save water and create manure (thereby reducing waste that clogs pipelines and waterways)? We should look at implementing this either through private initiative or government supported schemes in India.
Domex, a popular brand in toilet cleaning solutions, has come up with an interesting campaign called - 'Toilet for Babli'. Since open defecation and poor cleaning are known to cause diseases, and since people (especially women) need a toilet right in their homes/near their homes in order to be able to use it at any time, it's important to make villages open-defecation free.
You can bring about the change in the lives of millions of kids, thereby showing your support for the Domex Initiative. All you need to do is “click” on the “Contribute Tab” on www.domex.in and Domex will contribute Rs.5 on your behalf to eradicate open defecation, thereby helping kids like Babli live a dignified life.
It's good to note that corporate companies are pitching in for building more toilets in India. It will be better if they insist that their contributions are used to create renewable energy-based toilets, so that they are used effectively, and become sustainable and useful on the long run. Another advantage is, once installed, solar panels/concentrators can power these toilets for more than 25 years without additional cost. The maintenance is also minimum.
Clean energy for clean toilets. Don't you think that's a great idea? Do visit the Domex web-page link given above and click on the contribute button. Your clicks and shares can make a difference to many people without toilet facilities.
