By Staff Reporter
25/July/2016
Enviro Loo together with the Moretele Municipality will be starting the maintenance programme in Ward 28, 5, 16, 26, 24, 18, 19, and 12.
This partnership entails taking full responsibility of the maintenance and appointing contracting local cooperatives and employing individuals or groups from within the community to conduct the maintenance. We are happy to have employed 18 people from the community on a two year contract.
The next two years will be used to assess the success of the Enviro Loo structured maintenance programme vis-à-vis the model previously followed by the municipality with a view to inform the next steps after the conclusion of the two year contract. Enviro Loo now has structured maintenance model with strict oversight mechanisms, we have now been appointed on a two year contract to do maintenance for all the Enviro Loo units in Moretele.
The Enviro Loo is a waterless toilet system that is a safe, non-polluting and cost-effective solution to sanitation requirements on any scale. In 2013, the first 3 508 Enviro Loo toilets were installed in the Moretele Municipality where initially, when the units were sold, the obligation was placed on the community to do their own maintenance. Ongoing maintenance is important to ensuring the Enviro Loo works.
Servicing of the Enviro requires routine raking on a quarterly basis. When this is done, what is left in the Enviro Loo is waste that is harmless, organic matter that can be safely disposed of without any using a sewage.
Since installation, the Enviro Loos have NOT been maintained largely because the community (individual households) had to maintain their own toilets. The lack of maintenance has resulted in the community thinking the Enviro Loo doesn’t work, whereas all that is needed is routine maintenance and servicing.
The maintenance programme started on the 1st of June 2016, the community can expect enviro loo representatives visiting and maintaining their Enviro Loo toilets. The servicing and maintenance routine will entail opening the inspection tank cover; evaluating the waste in the chamber; raking the waste from the top of the drying plate to the bottom (this is done to allow for dehydration of the solid waste); removing any foreign waste (books, chairs, bricks, bottles, shoes, etc.) ; adding compost to the raked waste and sprinkling some agriculture lime or enzymes; measuring the liquid level; closing the inspection tank cover; assessing wind-master, bracket and vent pipe still secured; evaluating cubicle, ensuring the toilet seat and lid are still intact and in place.
The Enviro Loo representatives will have name badges, should there be any issues; the community is urged to call 011 762 1624, provide the name of the representative and report any problems.
