Issue 3, 2017

How sociopolitical factors affected the implementation of Cape Town's vacuum sewer

Abstract

Installed in an informal settlement, South Africa's first vacuum sewer failed immediately after its commissioning. Dissent from municipal officials and residents alike collectively contributed to the system's dysfunction. The failed vacuum sewer is emblematic of the limitations of technology-driven approaches in informal settlements, as well as the fallibility of popular policy assumptions about integrated planning and collective community management. It highlights the need to apply multidisciplinary approaches in sanitation delivery, whereby the often-conflicting political aspects of development are confronted in order to provide and sustain basic services in informal settlements.

Graphical abstract: How sociopolitical factors affected the implementation of Cape Town's vacuum sewer

  • This article is part of the themed collection: Sanitation

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
17 Apr 2016
Accepted
09 Mar 2017
First published
09 Mar 2017

Environ. Sci.: Water Res. Technol., 2017,3, 513-519

How sociopolitical factors affected the implementation of Cape Town's vacuum sewer

L. Taing, Environ. Sci.: Water Res. Technol., 2017, 3, 513 DOI: 10.1039/C6EW00089D

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