Almost 1 billion people defecate in the open, and about 2.4 billion do not have access to good sanitary facilities. This huge accumulation of waste represents a major threat to health, but according to a report by the United Nations University (UNU), it would have a positive potential: its use as a source of energy for millions of homes in developing countries, particularly those from rural areas and small towns.
UNU’s work indicates that cleaning and reusing wastewater would allow the expansion of arable land in arid regions. In addition, human feces contain nutrients and have energy potential, as they are combustible when dried.
Biogas can be produced from these organic waste, which is obtained by the anaerobic degradation of waste by bacteria. Biogas, made up of 60% methane, represents an important source of energy. On the other hand, dried and treated wastewater has been shown to possess energy similar to coal and charcoal, if burned at the appropriate temperature.
UNU’s analysis highlights the financial implications of the matter. The minimum estimated value of biogas generation from the faeces of the 1 billion people who defecate in the open is more than 200 million dollars a year , enough to cover the annual energy demand of almost 10 million households of the countries where these people live.
That figure would be between $ 1.6 billion and $ 9.5 billion if calculated from the organic waste of all humanity. The latter value would respond to the electricity needs of 130 million households, as many as Indonesia, Brazil and Ethiopia together.
