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At the current rate of progress, there will probably still be 2.8 billion people world-wide without safely managed sanitation by 2030. To incentivise and increase implementation of sustainable faecal sludge management (FSM), especially in low and middle-income countries like Cambodia, human waste must be regarded as a resource. However, planning data, e.g. on the quantities, composition and fate of faecal sludge after leaving households, are inadequate and lack accuracy. The aim of this study was to provide baseline data for effective FSM planning by sanitation stakeholders in Phnom Penh. This was done by quantifying sludge volumes generated, transport logistics and resource recovery potential to incentivise sustainable management. Interviews were conducted with users and emptying and transportation contractors, together with collection of technical data about on-site sanitation systems. Geographical coordinates of household sampling locations and disposal sites were also mapped. The results revealed that Cheung Ek and Kob Srov wetlands are the main recipients of faecal sludge collected in Phnom Penh with the amount of 18,800 m3 and 13,700 m3 annually, respectively. The analysis showed that faecal sludge in Phnom Penh contains valuable resources such as nitrogen (6 tons), phosphorus (13 tons) and energy (148-165 GWh) annually, but in-depth investigations of appropriate treatment options for resource recovery are required. Detailed documentation of the location of potential recoverable resources from faecal sludge would assist decision-makers in developing action plans for sustainable FSM in Phnom Penh and similar cities.

Comprehensive knowledge of faecal sludge characteristics is needed for sludge management planning, but it is lacking for the city of Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Thus, this study characterised physicochemical properties of faecal sludge from households in Phnom Penh and related these to sludge containment unit type, unit age, connectedness to the urban drainage network, type of wastewater captured, watertight containment units, number of users, and emptying practices. In total, 194 faecal sludge samples collected during containment unit emptying were analysed for physicochemical parameters. Information on containment units was collected in a survey of emptiers and users. Mean values of faecal sludge chemical parameters were found to be slightly lower than previously reported values for low-/middle-income countries, whereas physicochemical properties were within similar ranges. The main factor influencing organic matter content in faecal sludge was containment unit connection to the urban drainage network, whereas emptying practice and capture of only blackwater affected nutrient levels. The concentrations of nutrients and organic pollutants greatly exceeded Cambodian discharge standards for wastewater. This causes environmental impacts, so treatment is needed before discharge. The faecal sludge characteristics and influencing factors identified here can serve as a baseline for sanitation stakeholders planning faecal sludge management systems in Phnom Penh and similar cities.

Denna rapport sammanfattar resultatet av en workshop med olika sakägare kring frågan om gödselprodukter innehållande återvunnen näring från avloppsströmmar. Som underlag till workshopen har även en litteraturöversikt, intervjuer och enkäter med utvalda sakägare genomförts. Rapporten presenterar de behov sakägarna anser att dessa produkter måste eller bör uppfylla. Arbetet har genomförts gemensamt mellan den svenska näringsplattformen och forskningsprojektet End-of-Wastewater under år 2020. Svenska näringsplattformen är en plattform som samlar aktörer och kunskap inom kretslopp av näringsämnen med syfte att stödja, underlätta och överbrygga hinder för att möjliggöra en systemomställning där näringsämnena i avloppsströmmar är en del av ett rent kretslopp i synergi med de globala hållbarhetsmålen (https://www.ri.se/sv/svenskanaringsplattformen). Projektet End-of-Wastewater handlar om att utforska och sprida kunskap kring hur samhället kan ställa om till att hålla näringsämnen, såsom kväve och fosfor, men även kol i rena kretslopp. Omställningen syftar på att ansvarsfullt länka samman organiska restflöden från mänskliga samhällen till nyproduktion av grödor på jordbruksmark. I denna omställning finns diverse aktörer som redan är eller bör vara delaktiga för att skapa ett kretslopp. Projektet kommer att utveckla ett interaktivt verktyg för att stötta dessa aktörer med att hitta, navigera bland och förstå den gedigna evidensbaserade forskning som finns inom området för innovativa och hållbara lösningar (http://www.endofwastewater.net/).

Globally, 2.3 billion people lack sanitation. Innovative solutions are needed that allow for rapid service expansion to underserved populations. Serious games can bring new perspectives into rigid planning and decision-making by increasing the understanding of complex issues, supporting learning of alternative perspectives and enhancing stakeholders cooperation. Existing games are inadequate for addressing the sanitation challenge and current frameworks for game development are neither comprehensive, nor tailored to sanitation planning. The objectives of this report are a) to develop a generic framework for development of serious games supporting transformative planning and governance; and b) to develop a set of specifications for a serious game for transformative sanitation planning specifically, c) to present a sanitation planning game prototype, and d) to report on an assessment of this game prototype. The report is based on literature studies and prototyping with user tests. A comprehensive framework for game development is presented and specifications for a serious game in sanitation planning are described. Initial game prototyping found that not all specifications could be fulfilled. Yet, focusing the framework on the serious purpose of the game, its worldview, its content, and its context of use brought a different but useful logic into the game design process.

Additional file 1: ROSES form for systematic map protocols.

Wastewater irrigation is a common practice in developing countries due to water scarcity and increasing demand for food production. However, there are health risks and ecological risks associated with this practice. Small-scale wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) intend to decrease these risks but still face management challenges. This study assessed how the management status of five small-scale WWTPs in Cochabamba, Bolivia affects health risks associated with consumption of lettuce and ecological risks due to the accumulation of nutrients in the soil for lettuce and maize crops. Risk simulations for three wastewater irrigation scenarios were: raw wastewater, actual effluent and expected effluent. Results showed that weak O&M practices can increase risk outcomes to higher levels than irrigating with raw wastewater. Improving O&M to achieve optimal functioning of small-scale WWTPs can reduce human health risks and ecological risks up to 2 log10 DALY person−1 year−1 and to 2 log10 kg nitrogen ha−1 accumulated in soil, respectively.

Additional file 2: Stakeholder survey with summary of responses.