Integration water, energy and sanitation solution for stand-alone settlements Original Research Article

Lake Victoria basin has a large rural and rapidly growing peri-urban population that lacks sustainable solutions to safe and adequate water supply, energy and sanitation. Access to safe water and sanitation was 60% and 53%, respectively, by 2006. An Integrated Water, Energy and Sanitation Solution (IWESS) has been muted as a sustainable way of utilising the natural resources through a concept that turns waste into a resource thereby taking advantage of what is currently considered as problem sources and converting them into useful inputs. Tests from the Pilot sites developed show that grey and black water, kitchen and solid human waste can be used as separate inputs into an integrated waste management technological chain system that incorporates a constructed wetland-biogas-sand filter system to purify water and biodegrade solid waste to provide water for non-potable uses, biomass and biogas for energy and timber supply and manure for soil nutrient enrichment.