JOIN USSmall soak pits, big changes
Surrounded by lush greenery, a soak pit with a square border and a circular lid complements the many environment-friendly practices at organic farmers Peter and Lona Serrao’s farm in Permude in Dakshina Kannada – located about 22 km from Mangaluru.
The soak pit has proved transformative in the management of wastewater in the area. “Earlier, grey water was discharged in the open, resulting in waterlogging, bad odour and increased incidence of diseases like malaria,” Peter recollected. The term ‘grey water’ is used to describe wastewater generated from bathing, washing clothes, kitchen and other household activities.
Liquid waste management was also the need of the hour in Udupi district’s Yerlapady village. Under Jal Jeevan Mission, ‘functional household taps’ for drinking water were installed in homes, said a resident, Radha Poojary. Since there was no effective system to manage the liquid waste generated, grey water began to overflow and accumulate in the area. Radha explained that 80% of the water supplied was used and discharged as grey water.
Thus, when gram panchayats in Permude and Yerlapady offered to build low-cost soak pits for grey water management, Peter and Radha grabbed the opportunity. Panchayat leaders decided to utilise funds from the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee scheme (MGNREGS) for this purpose.
The Permude Panchayat Development Officer (PDO) Shailaja said the gram panchayat, covering 1,300 households, has built 17 soak pits. Peter built the soak pit in his farm at a total cost of Rs 17,000.
The Permude panchayat has also made it mandatory for new buildings to have soak pits in order to obtain a licence. “Some residents needed further motivation to build soak pits. We are keen that every household should have a soak pit to prevent contamination of surface water and rivers,” she added.
Managing liquid waste
After being declared ‘open-defecation free’ in November 2018, Karnataka began to focus on cleanliness of water sources and decentralised solid and liquid waste management.
In 2020, Karnataka became the first state to implement a policy for waste management in rural areas, defining water and sanitation as primary responsibilities of gram panchayats.
“Liquid waste management includes both, treatment of grey water and black (faecal sludge) water,” said Dakshina Kannada Zilla Panchayat Chief Executive Officer Kumar.
The district has superseded its target of constructing 6,500 soak pits this year, and having built 7,000 soak pits so far, spending over Rs 3 crore.
The efficient management of grey water in Yerlapady has found a mention in the Centre for Science and Environment’s (CSE) recent compendium of successful water supply and sanitation practices in India, titled ‘Big change is possible’.
CSE Director General Sunita Narain stressed that grey water management — to treat and reuse water for recharging ground water — is key to sustainability of water sources. “When we pollute water, we waste it. Water supply has to be linked to sanitation and wastewater management,” she added. Sunita observed that the involvement of local communities has played a big role in successful management of solid and liquid waste.