Community Training and Capacity Building

Developing A Health And Safety Programme For Pit Emptying

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The primary purpose of sanitation is to protect people and the environment from the pathogens in faeces which can cause disease. In the case of on-site sanitation, faecal sludge must be handled periodically when the vault containing faeces is emptied. Pit emptying is often logistically difficult and there is significant risk of workers being exposed to diseases or householders’ environment becoming contaminated, putting them at risk. We developed a detailed health and safety programme to address the health and safety risks involved in pit emptying. The programme includes management tools and a training video for workers with safety protocols for minimizing the risk of exposure and contamination during pit emptying. The programme was utilised in a project funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which involves eThekwini Municipality emptying the vaults of its Urine Diversion toilets. The tools developed in this project were offered to the contractor as a model for the health and safety programme which he is required to implement. The materials developed in this programme have wide-reaching application elsewhere as well, and the manual has already been adapted to the Rwandan context by Pit Vidura.

Developing A Health And Safety Programme For Pit Emptying    

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