PROJECT LIST:
Etta Projects provided the $20 that built an in-home water filter for a family of 10 for 6-12 months.
Ecological Composting Latrines
Through its ongoing work in rural Bolivia, Etta Projects has repeatedly encountered villages that lack even basic sanitation systems. We have actively promoted safe water and improved hygiene, but a critical element is still missing—sanitary latrine facilities. Recognizing that sanitation is an important component of community development and critical to improving health conditions for people living in poverty, Etta Projects is committed to making sanitation a priority. Throughout 2011, Etta Projects will work with District 6940 of Rotary International to improve sanitation by constructing 85 ecological latrines in villages where we have previously worked on clean water and hygiene projects.
Most families involved in this project do not currently have regular access to a latrine system of any kind. Those that do use in-ground pits which pose a number of problems in the lowland tropics of Eastern Bolivia. Open pit latrines are a breeding-ground for pests and disease. They frequently become flooded during the rainy season contaminating ground water and causing pervasive run-off of fecal matter. Villagers also complain of the odors, flies and insects associated with pit latrines.
The ecological latrine this project employs requires no water and, when used correctly, is self-sustaining. It safely contains waste in two above ground tanks, separating urine from feces and composting fecal matter to produce a usable fertilizer. Alternating tanks are either in use as a latrine, or capped off and composting. The eco-latrine system has proven successful in other parts of Bolivia and many other countries around the world.
As always, Etta Projects is comitted to building local capacity and skills, rather than giving handouts. All families who receive ecological latrines will participate in their construction and ongoing maintainance. To this end, Etta Projects will provide educational workshops led by trained promoters from within the villages. These workshops will teach participants how to construct eco-latrines, how to operate and maintain them, and how to safely and effectively utilize the resulting compost. The workshops will also provide education in hygiene, sanitation and disease prevention.
This project will be supported by both labor and financial contributions from participating families in the local villages.
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