Welcome back to our second module on the Erdos, China case study. In the last module we presented the case of the Erdos eco-san pilot project and highlighted some of its unique features: the first multi-story source-separating dry toilet project in China, and the closed loop nutrient recovery processes that were implemented. In this module, we are going to analyze some of the problems and challenges that cropped up very early after the residents had moved in, and eventually led to the low levels of user satisfaction shown in the graph here, and finally led to the total dismantling of the dry sanitation system in 2010. This graph highlights the four main grievances and issues at play that explain the high rate of dissatisfaction. The institutional, financial, and socio-cultural aspects. By far, the most important are the technical aspects. The main issue here was new toilet technology that was not yet robust and mature enough to stand the wear and tear of everyday use. This was due to mechanical parts that malfunctioned, and the incorrectly installed ventilation system that was compounded by broken fans. This led to major odor problems and huge complaints by the residents. Also, the fans were perceived as being too loud when they were in operation. A further problem common to urine separating dry toilets was the crystallization of urine in the odor locks. Some of these failures can be explained by the installation of a totally new system and the lack of experience by the local builders in installing them. Secondly, the socio-cultural aspects. The Erdos apartments were bought by aspiring, upwardly mobile apartment owners who never really accepted the toilets and perceived them as being inferior technology. This non-acceptance led to the incorrect use, for example, using water to flush as shown here, or throwing solid waste into the toilet bowl. These problems were highlighted by an evaluation conducted by SEI. The two graphs on the bottom left show that a majority of interviewed households were ashamed of using their toilets, and thought they lowered the value of their apartment. Thirdly, the financial aspects certainly also played a role. The entire capital and maintenance costs proved to be more than twice as high as a conventional water-flushed sanitation system, and especially the maintenance cost with mechanical emptying of waste bins and urine were seen as costly. The ecological benefits like the water savings were not perceived as a great benefit by the homeowners. And finally, the institutional aspects that led to some of the abovementioned problems. During the project implementation, there was not a clearly developed understanding of the responsibilities and duties between local government and the main developer. The diverse interests of the three main stakeholders were also a major issue. The Stokholm Environmental Institute was mainly interested in promoting ecological sanitation in a multi-story building. The Dongxeng District government was interested in having a solution for water shortages and also promoting an image as a modern city. And lastly, the Doxing Estate development company was of course, interested in making a profit. In hindsight, the incorporation of a single management entity would probably have led to less building mistakes and less technical failures when implementing something totally new. In the end, three and a half years after moving in, and despite attempts at installing a newer generation of dry toilet called the Separette, and improving and widening the ventilation pipes and replacing the fans, the homeowners collectively decided to replace the entire dry toilet system and replace them with low flush, water-based cistern toilets. The only remaining part of the project today is the onsite treatment plant which acts as a decentralized wastewater treatment plant. This module provided only a short insight into some of the challenges of trying, ultimately without success, to introduce novel closed-loop sanitation systems in a multi-story context. It does not mean that dry sanitation systems cannot work <i>per se</i>, but that mature and robust technology solutions need to be aligned with user expectations and aspirations. If you want to learn more about this interesting project and details about how the whole story played out, you can order this book from Practical Action Publishers, which we've included in this week's list of further reading. In our last and final case study we will move to Indonesia and present one of the great success stories of bringing urban sanitation to scale. This module will be presented by Isabel Blackett from the Water and Sanitation program in Jakarta. Thanks, and see you next week.