Water and Sanitation

This project deals with the reuse of treated wastewater for irrigation of selective crops, chosen according to the “project idea” of investigating plant species characterized by the prevailing local conditions (different vulnerability to chemical and microbiological contamination). The current wastewater treatment processes in Morocco, Palestine, and Tunisia, include activated sludge systems, membrane biological reactors and constructed wetland. The treated wastewater will be used for the irrigation of model plants in field-scale and/or microcosms and/or in pots, with cultivations irrigated with freshwater as controls. Chemical and microbiological contamination were monitored along complete agricultural production chain in order to evaluate the efficacy of waste water treatment plants and assess the potential impacts of reclaimed water use in Palestine and Morocco. Moreover, two case studies were conducted to study the socio-economic and gender aspects relating to water reuse for agriculture purposes in Palestine and Morocco

SMALL is an innovative and interdisciplinary research for development project that focuses on water and sanitation management in small towns of Sub-Saharan Africa. The goal of this interdisciplinary research is to develop and facilitate the adoption of sustainable, efficient and equitable models for water supply and sanitation (WSS) service provision that suits the particular needs, capacities and dynamics of small towns in Uganda and Mozambique. The project worked towards local ownership and impact by ensuring that some of the outputs were immediately translated into practices, helped lead to a positive impact on the health of users in the long run.

Learn more by visiting the project website

This project provides the opportunity to put Dengue on the Mozambican agenda as the disease has been considered inexistent for too long, due to its status as a neglected disease. Research and data provision are thus key to influencing policies to fight dengue in the periphery of great urban centers. This project aims to understand the social and water quality dynamics for the outbreaks and spread of dengue in Mozambique, and has three main objectives. Firstly, it aims to explore the interdependence between intermittent water supply, deficient sanitation (specifically solid waste management problems), and dengue. Secondly, it focuses on households on the periphery of Maputo and Pemba cities to identify the people in households that are more vulnerable to the disease. Finally, it will document the distinct techniques of water storage and reasons that lead households to continue storing water. It aims to inform and document politics and practice, not only in what concerns the government’s treatment of dengue outbreaks, but also regarding water reforms and water supply providers.

Learn more by visiting the project website

Scarcity of freshwater threatens the survival of delta cities worldwide. Water reuse can significantly contribute to solving scarcity problems. Maputo in the Incomati delta in Mozambique is a typical example area with freshwater shortage, leading to water competition and public health hazards. The major part of the population lives in informal settlements not connected to centralised water supply. Water management organisations lack knowledge, tools and capacity to integrate reuse in the overall design of water systems.

UN Habitat created a video that presents some of the problems related to water distribution in Mozambique, which you can view here.

The consortium led by the Technical University Delft increased fundamental knowledge on water reuse and contribute to developing new technologies and approaches to integrate reuse in the overall water systems. Mixed teams of PhD students of social and technological sciences conducted the research. Stakeholders were involved throughout the entire project, and pilot projects were executed and knowledge transferred to and anchored in local organisations and water management policies.

The Sustainable freshwater Mozambique project was funded under the Urbanising Delta’s of the World programme part of NOW, and co-funded by DUPC2. The project was implemented from 2017 until 2022.

This project 'Mobile Microwave Middle East: Portable microwave-based treatment system for on-site faecal sludge treatment for the humanitarian and development WASH sector’ started in 2017 in Jordan as a means to provide better access to clean drinking water and improve sanitary conditions. The project was established to solve challenges caused by water scarcity issues in relation to the refugee crisis in the Middle East, which predominantly affected Lebanon and Jordan.'The provision of clean water and hygienic sanitation, which are essential services for safeguarding public health, are often disrupted in emergency situations. Outbreaks of diarrhoeal diseases are common. Containment and treatment of faecal matter is a vital barrier against the spreading of diarrhoeal diseases in particular during emergencies, when the population is more vulnerable. The objective of the work at IHE is to pilot a FS microwave (MW) based treatment technology in Jordan. The system can be rapidly deployed upon the event of an emergency and are effective under challenging physical conditions. 

The system was optimized and applied in Jordan with the involvement of the German Jordanian University (GJU). A PhD student was involved in the project contributing with the design, evaluation, and optimization of the MW system using different types of sludge. GJU provided the testing site in Jordan focusing on alternative sources of energy to feed the MW system (evaluating the use of solar energy and source), and analytical support. The outcome was an evaluated technology, than can be used to treat FS effectively in the context of emergencies and the increase of the local WASH capacity in Jordan. The MW system remained in Jordan for further use with the GJU.

For more information, read the article here. 

SciDev.Net and InfoNile proposed to combine data on water usage and disease to examine how the coronavirus pandemic is impacting on water across the global South, with a particular focus on the Nile Basin. From irrigation to hand washing, from industry to food preparation, water is at the heart of almost all human activity, yet the impact from the COVID-19 outbreak on water is unclear. Data-based journalism allows the facts to speak for themselves by presenting data in compelling infographics that highlight areas of concern. This project used data-based journalism to inform policymakers, giving them the tools, they need to react. 

SciDev.Net and InfoNile used their global networks of journalists and the wider network of agricultural specialists who work with SciDev.Net’s parent organization CABI to gather data on how the coronavirus outbreak is impacting on water – good and bad.