SaniPath Acronyms and Definitions

Acronyms

CBO Community-Based Organization

GPS Global Positioning System

NGO Non-Governmental Organization

WASH Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene

Definition of Key Terms

Biosolids: The nutrient-rich organic materials resulting from the treatment of sewage sludge; sometimes used as manure.

Flooding: Standing water that lasts for at least one hour in an area where water is generally absent. Flood water comes from excessive rainfall as well as from high water levels and high tides. Flooding can also be caused or exacerbated by dysfunctional drainage systems or broken water mains.

Household: Consists of all the people who share a cooking pot and sleep in the same dwelling.

Municipal water system: Piped water system managed by the city, water utility, or a private company.

Open defecation: Any feces left in the open (on the ground or in drains). This includes chamber pots or potties emptied into drains, and includes both adult and children’s feces.

Open drain: Any drain without a cover that allows human contact with its contents (see Figure 1).

Private toilet / latrine: A toilet or latrine intended for use by one family or extended family, including those in family compounds. The proposed definition for post 2015 indicators is “shared between no more than five families or 30 persons, whichever is fewer” (UNICEF/WHO 2013).

Public toilet / latrine: Includes any toilet or latrine available for anyone to use (either for free or a fee), including those in schools, workplaces, houses of worship, or other public locations in the community.

Sanitation infrastructure: All built items meant to contain, transport, and treat fecal matter; this can include toilets, latrines, pipes, drains, sewage treatment plants, settling ponds, and septic tanks.

Septage: The partially treated waste in a latrine pit or septic tank.

Wastewater: Water that has been used for washing, flushing toilets, or manufacturing, and thus contains wastes. Sewage is the subset of wastewater that includes feces or urine.

Wastewater irrigated produce: Produce grown above ground, possibly irrigated by wastewater, for which the edible part of the plant could touch wastewater directly, and for which the edible part can be eaten raw. Examples include but are not limited to: lettuce, tomatoes, spring onion, cabbage, cucumbers, and peppers. Examples of produce that are not relevant either because they are not eaten raw, they grow below the ground, or because the edible part is not watered, include the following: bananas, oranges, potatoes, corn, and mangoes.

Waypoint: A set of coordinates (longitude and latitude) that identify a unique location.