The Philippines has experienced resurgence in economic development these past few years. It has greatly benefited from its remarkable amount of human and natural resources. This is evidenced by the tremendous foreign investments to the country. The Board of Investment has reported an approximately PhP95million worth of foreign direct investment for the Year 2005. Tourist arrivals are ever increasing. Statistics provided by the Office of Tourism Development Planning of the Department of Tourism shows that for the period January to May 2006, the Philippines received a total of 985,000 tourists from 12 countries.

However, these developments have also caused negative impacts to the environment. Sanitation remains to be one of the most serious threats of the country in relation to poverty and sustainability of the Philippine environment. Deployment of sanitation infrastructure has not kept up with high population growth and rapid urbanization, with serious consequences for the people’s health and safety. Based on the review conducted by the Water Supply and Sanitation Performance Enhancement Project (WPEP) on urban sewerage and sanitation sector, there is a prolonged lack of investment in the sector and deteriorating quality of sewerage and on-site sanitation facilities throughout the Philippines.

In general, there is a lack of sewerage and other sanitation services leaving the population with limited option for excreta and wastewater disposal. The domestic sector accounts for 48 percent of organic pollution followed by agricultural and industrial sectors. The urban poor especially informal settlers remain excluded from sanitation services. Sewer networks do not reach the slum and squatter settlements found in most Philippine cities, and their inhabitants seldom have enough space or cash to construct private facilities like septic tanks. Communal toilets have been constructed in low-income urban areas – but there is little evidence that this is enough. Its highly polluted effluent flows untreated into the drainage system. In Metro Manila, only less than 8% of the population has access to sewer connections. The rest either have on-site treatment or no treatment at all. For those who have septic tanks, majority are improperly designed, poorly constructed and ill maintained. When households avail of the services of commercial sewage collectors, it becomes a mystery as to where the sewage is dumped. However, evidence indicates that BOD increases in our nation’s waterways and coastal areas. And on land, there is a significant decrease in the fertility of the soil. These pose serious consequences for water quality, public health and economic development.

Some of the identified critical public health problems resulting from the disposal of human excrement are - contaminated drinking water wells and outbreaks of gastrointestinal disease, Leptospirosis and cholera. As reported by the World Bank Philippine Environment Monitor 2003, approximately 12 people die each day from diarrhea and water-borne diseases resulted in 31% of all reported illnesses from 1996-2000.

The cost of water pollution to the Philippine economy is estimated to be P67 billion (US$1.3 billion) annually, of which P3 billion is attributed to health, P17 billion to fisheries production, and P47 billion to tourism.

Proper sanitation, along with clean water and food security, is a primary driver for improving public health. It reduces people’s exposure to disease by providing a clean living environment. Mobilizing a sanitation technology that addresses the above-mentioned issues is a vital action of policy makers, community developers and technical persons. It is apparent that this enormous challenge leads to a need to rethink and raise the status of sanitation and a need for new approaches, techniques and methods based on local materials and local ways of life.

For more information on possible sanitation alternatives, please email the PGBC.