Septage Management Stories

of 2 Cities
 
 Dumaguete City

• First LGU-financed, city-wide septic tank

maintenance program in the Philippines
• Will achieve full cost recovery in about 5
years through user fees
• Partnership between city government and
water utility (50-50 sharing)
• Low-cost, low-maintenance septage
treatment facility
• Lesson learned useful for others in the
Philippines and other countries, being
shared with many visitors
History
 History
2005 Passed Septage Management Ordinance mandating regular
desludging, properly designed septic tanks, payment of user
fee of P2 per cubic meter of water used added to monthly
water bill
2008 City designed and began construction of treatment facility
with technical assistance from USAID, capacity 80 cubic
meters/day, P20 million
June City government signed Memorandum of Agreement with the
2009 local water utility for equal sharing of capital and operating
costs and future income
May Completed construction of septage treatment plant;
2010 Bought six used desludging vacuum trucks;
Started operation of treatment facility and collection of
septage fees.
On- Information and promotion campaigns including news media,
going posters, fliers, workshops, consultations
 Anaerobic Desludging truck Anaerobic
Pond 2 Pond 1

Anaerobic
Pond 3

Maturation
Facultative Pond 3
Pond
Maturation
Pond 2

Maturation
Pond 1

Septage
Treatment
Plant,
Gravel Filter and Desludging Vacuum
May 2011
Wetland Trucks
 Operations from May 2010 - April 2011
Source No. of Volume of Septage
Establishments collected, cu.m.
Residences 2801 9875
(Estimated total number of households = 25,000)
Commercial Establishments 282 1818

City and Provincial Govt. Offices, Other LGU 100 1202

Public Schools 14 289
Others (private schools, churches, NGOs, LGU) 73 733
Total 3,270 13,917

Septage Treatment Plant Efficiency:

Influent BOD = 1000 - 2,500 mg/l
Effluent BOD = 2 mg/l
Construction Cost of Septage Treatment Plant = P20 million
Cost of Six Desludging Vacuum Trucks = P5 million
Estimated Septage User Fees Collected for the Past Ten Months:
450,000 cu.m/per month x 10 months x P2/cu.m = P9,000,000
 Problems and Lessons Learned
1 Inadequate training on the operation of desludging vacuum equipment
resulting in major damage to vacuum trucks.
Need to train septage collection crew extensively on specific vacuum truck
models and not with other models

2 Leaking of maturation and anaerobic concrete ponds (leaks started after 10

months of operation).
Control emptying of leaking pond; seal leaks and clean ponds of mud, sludge
and stones; have water pump, brooms, flat shovels, buckets and protective
boots and gloves for cleanup operations and emergencies.

3 High volume of dried sludge composed of sand and soil from old septic tanks
with open bottoms;
Need to use heavy equipment to remove dried sludge from sludge drying bed,
septic tanks should have sealed bottoms.

4 Insufficient storage capacity of sludge drying bed. Where to take the dried
sludge?
Will build an additional sludge drying bed.
 Problems and Lessons Learned
5 Hotels, restaurants and big businesses will only allow desludging late at
night.
•Need to coordinate desludging schedules between septage treatment staff
and desludging crew.
•Need to desludge hotels more often preferably every four months as
septage collected have very high organic content and suspended solids
which could upset the treatment plant.

6 May not meet target

Need more septage trucks to meet the target of desludging all septic tanks
every three to five years.
7 Frogs keep jumping into facultative and maturation ponds and wetland and
multiplying and cannot get out – strong odor from floating dead frogs;

Completed construction of low frog walls.

8 Oil and grease in septic tanks of food outlets.
Informed owners to prevent oil and grease from getting into septic tanks
Septage collection crew will not delsudge septic tanks with visible grease.
 Problems and Lessons Learned
9 Abundant fish in facultative and maturation ponds and wetland.
Prohibit fishing in ponds.

10 Some residents still not clear about the “environmental fee” on their water
bills.
Need to resume tri-media information campaign on the city’s septage
management system with a focus on user fees on the water bills..

11 Interest from nearby towns in dumping septage at the treatment plant.

Need to establish desludging fees for septage coming from outside the city
as adjoining municipalities are now aware of the city’s septage management
system and their own urgent need for desludging services.

12 a. Some homeowners have visited the septage treatment plant out of

curiosity and to confirmed that septage is properly disposed of.

b. Numerous LGUs and NGOs have visited and learned about the city’s
septage management system and are now planning for a similar system.
 Prepared by:
Josephine M. Antonio
BS Civil Engrg.; M. Engrg.
City Planning and
Development Office
Dumaguete City, Philippines
 Marikina City

MARIKINA RIVER IN 1992

FACTORS THAT COMPELLED THE CITY TO
ACT

• The intention to further rehabilitate the river which has a

Class C classification (no water contact activities
allowed)
• Devolution of environmental functions to the local
government
• Implementation of the Ecological Solid Waste
Management Act, Clean Water Act and Clean Air Act
 Clean Water Summit
 Lectures/seminars in partnership with
other agencies

In partnership with USAID

and Manila Water
ORDINANCE ESTABLISHING A SEPTAGE
AND SEWAGE
MANAGEMENT PROGRAM IN MARIKINA
CITY

NAGLUNSAD ANG PAMAHALAANG LUNGSOD NG MARIKINA

NG ‘’PROGRAMANG TODO SIPSIP ‘’

BILANG PAGTUGON SA ORDINANSA NAKIPAG UGNAYAN

ANG PAMAHALAANG LUNGSOD SA MANILA WATER COMPANY
UPANG MAGKAROON LIBRENG SIPSIP NG POSO NEGRO ANG
BAWAT MARIKEÑO NA GUMAGAMIT NG TUBIG MULA SA
MANILA WATER.SAKLAW NG ORDINANSANG ITO ANG LAHAT NG
ISTRAKTURA MAGING PRIBADO AT PAMPUBLIKO.
 TODO SIPSIP PROGRAM
 Seminar at Barangay
Level

In partnership with
barangay
and Manila Water Rapidly rolled out the environmental programs to all barangays as
the survey showed very positive reception and effects among the
residents surveyed.
 SPREADING OF PROGRAMS
THRU SIMPLE WAYS LIKE:
PARADE,
PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEM AND
HOUSE TO HOUSE DISTRIBUTION
OF LEAFLETS.
 House to house
Info. dissemination

sticker
ADVOCACY CAMPAIGN
Problems during the program
implementation…
1. Di namin makita ang poso negro namin.

2. Natabunan na, nagpa extend kami ng bahay.

3. Luma na ang poso negro namin.

4. Nakiki share lang kami ng poso negro sa relative.

5. Hindi standard ang size ng poso negro.

6. Wala kaming poso negro.

 MARIKINA CITY’S FIRST
COMMUNITY BASED SANITATION
PROGRAM
RESIDENTS OF CHAMPACA III HOA AND SOLID SANTAN DURING THEIR
VISIT AT MWC WATER TREATMENT FACILITIES LOCATED IN
U.P.DILIMAN,Q.C.
COMMUNAL SYSTEM

HOUSEHOLDS

ALLEY CLEAN OUT

SECONDARY TREATMENT
REUSABLE
COCOPEAT COCOPEAT WATER
COCOPEAT

COLLECTION TO STREET
EQT DRAINAGE
CHAMBER
OVERFLOW

ANAEROBIC BAFFLE REACTOR

A message from Mr. Dave of USAID

Simultaneous hand washing

with soap and water by grade
6 pupil from different schools
Coun.Ponchie Santos
Committee Chair
on Environment
 DECLOGGING OF ESTEROS CANALS

IMPROVEMENTS OF
CONSTRUCTION OF RIVER DIKE OTHER WATERWAYS
Summary : Developing a Local Sanitation Plan

Step 1: Determine the Baseline

Conduct a rapid assessment and collect baseline information on
the sanitation issues that are prevalent in the community.
(Survey Questionnaire available)
 
Step 2: Stakeholders’ Workshop
Involve stakeholders early on to turn them into partners
that will actively support and help implement the plan.
– Identify program goals and objectives and a consensus on the priority
issues and next steps
– Identify if there are potential private sector which can implement the
project via PPP (CDO and Zamboanga City)

o .
Summary : Developing a Local Sanitation Plan

Step 3: Empower a Technical Working Group

• The TWG is a formally recognized body that will define
objectives and timeframes, review alternatives and based on
evaluation of several alternatives, recommend preferred
alternatives for project implementation. (EO)

Step 4: Identify Priority Sanitation Intervention Areas

Step 5: Promote the Program in preparation for public
consultations (Dumaguete and Naga experiences)
Step 6: Get support from the LGU via an ordinance
Step 7: Promote, promote, promote (allow desludging,
pay user fee)…
Thank you!
Nene Narvaez

Philippine Sanitation Alliance

AECOM (USAID Grantee)
Suite 4022, Golden Rock Bldg.
168 Salcedo Street
Legaspi Village, Makati City 1229
Philippines
Tel/Fax +(632) 819-0687
Cell: +63-922-8119607
E-mail: fnarvaez@psa.ph