The Design of Pour-Flush Latrines

The traditional solution to providing sanitation facilities in urban areas has been conventional sewerage, but this technology is so expensive that it is not generally affordable by low-income communities. World Bank research has shown that full health benefits can be obtained through the use of a variety of lower-cost alternative sanitation technologies. Although the user convenience level of these technologies is not necessarily as high as that of conventional sewerage, this should not be considered a major disadvantage, since health improvements are initially more important than providing high levels of user convenience. This Technical Note describes in detail one of these technologies, the pour-flush latrine, which has been widely adopted during the International Drinking Water Supply and Sanitation Decade (1981-1990).