third party evaluation of the pilot dewats projects in dprk...third party evaluation of the pilot...

Third party evaluation of the pilot DEWATS

projects in DPRK

Paradigm Environmental Strategies Pvt. Ltd., G1, Lumbini Apartments,

#32, Venkatapura Main Road,

Koramangala Ist Block, Bangalore 560 034

Karnataka, India

Tel +91-80-2563 3390

Submitted to: UNICEF DPRK Office Pyongyang

28 Munsudong

PO Box 90

Democratic People’s Republic of Korea

Submitted on: 08 October, 2010

R-ADEPT-2010-12.1/ V3 DEWATS EVALUATION –YONTAN, DPRK i

Paradigm Environmental Strategies (P) Ltd.,

Pp 2

Document No: R-ADEPT-2010-10.1/ V1

Date of submission: 071012

Submitted: Pravinjith K.P

Client: UNICEF DPRK Office Pyongyang

Internal Document Control

Sl. No. Document Number & Date Prp Chk App Remarks

1. R-ADEPT-2010-10.1/ V1 081010 PKP PKP PKP Sent to UNICEF for comments

2. R-ADEPT-2010-10.1/ V1 101110 PB PKP PKP Draft final for approval

External Document Control

Sl.

No.

Document Number & Date Submitted on No & type of

copies

Distribution

list

Purpose

1. R-ADEPT-2010-10.1/ V1 08 Oct 2010 1 - soft UNICEF Draft

2. R-ADEPT-2010-11.1/ V2 10 Nov 2010 1 - soft UNICEF Draft Final

3. R-ADEPT-2010-12.1/ V3 07Dec2010 1 - soft UNICEF Final

R-ADEPT-2010-12.1/ V3 DEWATS EVALUATION –YONTAN, DPRK ii


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Contents

1 Background....................................................................................................................... 4

2 Terms of Reference .......................................................................................................... 4

3 Evaluation......................................................................................................................... 4

3.1 Design .......................................................................................................................... 5

3.2 Construction ................................................................................................................. 7

3.3 Commissioning........................................................................................................... 12

3.4 Operation and Maintenance ....................................................................................... 13

3.5 Performance ............................................................................................................... 15

3.6 Capacity Building....................................................................................................... 17

4 Lessons learnt ................................................................................................................. 18

5 Recommendations .......................................................................................................... 19

6 Conclusions .................................................................................................................... 22

7 References ...................................................................................................................... 23

List of Tables: Table 1 Wastewater stream characteristics adopted in design....................................................... 5

Table 2 Design DEWATS capacity and corresponding person equivalent ................................... 5

Table 3 DEWATS effluent quality at outlet of AF and equivalent treatment efficiency ............ 15

List of Photos: Photo 1 Skewed inlet pipe in BGS and larger spacing of reinforcement in ABR and AF ............ 7

Photo 2 Soil cover of 600mm for frost protection........................................................................ 8

Photo 3 Variation in pipe spacing and alignment in anaerobic tanks............................................ 9

Photo 4 Variation in pipe levels in DEWATS............................................................................... 9

Photo 5 Two chamber ABR and four chambers AF in DEWATS in 25 cum plant ........................ 10

Photo 6 Lateral entry of inlet pipe in Settlers .............................................................................. 10

Photo 7 Soil cover of 250mm for frost protection in DEWATS #26 .......................................... 11

Photo 8 Missing tee pipes in outlet chamber ............................................................................... 11

Photo 9 Irregular spacing in perforated slab for AF .................................................................... 12

Photo 10 Biogas dome constructed with a sealed cap. ................................................................ 13

Photo 11 Caked up scum in DEWATS #10................................................................................. 14

Photo 12 HGF in DEWATS #26 before and after site comments ............................................... 14

Photo 13 Attempts to measure sludge in DEWATS.................................................................... 16

Photo 14 Usage of Biogas in Community Kitchen...................................................................... 16

Photo 15 Ingenious sludge gauge fabricated with fluorescent tube............................................ 17

List of acronyms:

R-ADEPT-2010-12.1/ V3 DEWATS EVALUATION –YONTAN, DPRK iii


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Sl.No. Acronym Expansion

1. BOD Biological Oxygen Demand

2. COD Chemical Oxygen Demand

3. DEWATS Decentralized wastewater Treatment Systems

4. ABR Anaerobic Baffle Reactor

5. AF Anaerobic Filter

6. HRT Hydraulic Retention Time

7. Cum/d Cubic meters per Day

8. M Meters

9. mg/l Milligram per litre

10. HGF Horizontal Planted Gravel Filter

11. Q Discharge Quantity

12. Sq.m Square Meters

R-ADEPT-2010-12.1/ V3 DEWATS EVALUATION –YONTAN, DPRK 4


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1 Background

UNICEF, MoCM and the Yontan County authorities have installed the

pilot DEWATS for managing wastewater generated from the

households. M/s BORDA, Germany have provided the technical type

designs of the plant. A German consultant Mr.Bernd Ebeling helped the

MoCM in the design of the horizontal filter/wetland in June 2009 and

also trained the MoCM engineers. Ms. Ina Jurga, who was retained by

UNICEF to work on rural sanitation and DEWATS and provided

construction supervision support for the wetland and Greenhouses. The

first project was commissioned in September and today Yontan county

has installed 31 DEWATS. The officials from the Academy of Sciences

have started monitoring the performance of the plant since 2008.

As part of the review, UNICEF and MoCM have decided to evaluate

the pilot DEWATS project and accordingly engaged Mr. Pravinjith

Kunhipurayil, Managing Director, Paradigm Environmental Strategies (P)

Ltd., Bangalore, India to carry out the third party evaluation. The

contract was from 27th September to 11th October 2010.

2 Terms of Reference

The terms of reference for the third party evaluation has been

described below

1. Conduct desk review of technical design documents,

development of evaluation plans, including one field visit

2. Field observation and inspection of DEWATS facilities, including

the analysis of lab test of the effluent

3. In consultation with MoCM, County authorities and other

agencies develop draft evaluation report

4. Final report writing

The methodology for the evaluation involved discussion with the

Stakeholders- UNICEF, MoCM and the Yontan County Authorities, Study

of the technical design documents, Site inspections and review of

records.

3 Evaluation

The evaluation of the DEWATS project has been carried out under the

following heads

1. Design

2. Construction

3. Commissioning

4. Operation and Maintenance

5. Performance

6. Capacity building



6

3.1 Design

The review of the design has been based primarily on the “Feasibility

study DEWATS for Yontan” prepared by BORDA, the construction

drawings submitted by BORDA Germany and discussion with UNICEF,

MoCM officials and Yontan Authorities.

The BORDA team has carried out an exhaustive study of the project site

and prepared the conceptual designs of the DEWATS plants. They

have recommended DEWATS treatment capacities of 10, 25, 50 and

100 cum/day and related clustering of houses appropriate to the

chosen capacity. Accordingly, the construction drawings have been

furnished. The concept shows that mixed wastewater is allowed into a

DEWATS comprising of a Settler / biogas settler, followed by anaerobic

Baffle reactor and anaerobic filter before being discharged to the

tertiary treatment or municipal sewer as appropriate.

The Design team of MoCM received training in May 2009 in Beijing

supported by UNICEF for customizing and adapting the solutions for

their own local needs.

The waste water characteristics adopted for the design is given in Table

2 of the review report. The key input (design) values are summarised

below.

Table 1 Wastewater stream characteristics adopted in design

Sl No Parameters Input values

1 Temperature 10 deg C

2 BOD 190 mg/l

3 COD 380 mg/l

4 TSS 180 mg/l

5 Wastewater generation 130 lpcd

Accordingly, the DEWATS capacity and their design person equivalent

based on the wastewater generation of 130 lpcd are derived and

tabulated below

Table 2 Design DEWATS capacity and corresponding person equivalent

Sl No DEWATS capacity Person Equivalent (pe)

1 10 cum/day ~76

2 25 cum/day ~190

3 50 cum/day ~380

4 100 cum/day ~760



7

The DEWATS have been designed for an outlet effluent value of 60 mg/l

at the end of the Planted gravel filter. The desludging period adopted

for the design based on the input characteristics is

1. Settler – 18 months routine and 24 month compulsory

2. Anaerobic baffle Reactor – 36-60 months or when sludge level is

1.0 m whichever is earlier

3. Anaerobic Filter – 24- 36 months

Observations

Design calculations for the DEWATS finally adopted for construction

(namely 10, 25 cum/day) were not available for the review. A

comparison has been made with the design person equivalent based

on 130 lpcd and the actual connected load. The same has been

tabulated below:

Sl

N

o

DEWATS

capacity and

Numbers

Design

Person

equivalent

Reported

Actual

Person

equivalent

Actual/design

1 10 Cum/ day

17 Numbers

~76 pe 193-215 pe 2.5-2.8

2 25 Cum/ day

14 numbers

~190 pe 410-536 pe 2.1-2.8

• It should be recognised that DEWATS are designed for both

hydraulic loading and also organic loading. Although, the

average hydraulic loading (as per the data submitted) has not

been exceeded in the three projects which are monitored

(DEWATS #3, #7 and #8), it remains to be seen whether it is true

for other DEWATS. However, MoCM have stated that the

wastewater generation is an average of 51 lpcd.

• It is clarified that the school is not connected to DEWATS #9 and

also that the hospital is not connected to the DEWATS #11 due to

topographical constraints.

• The table also shows that the computed organic pollution loads

are likely to be exceeded from those that of the designs. The

variation is between 2.1 to 2.8 times the design values. Although

the DEWATS has the advantage of higher treatment efficiency

with increase in concentration, it still has a bearing on the

expected effluent quality of the DEWATS (which is likely to be

higher than the design value of 60 mg/l) and also the desludging

periods which is likely to be lower than the designed period given

earlier.



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3.2 Construction

The construction of the 31 DEWATS structure has been completed at

various times starting from the year 2008. Many of the plants are

already nearing two years of operation. MoCM indicated that all the

construction specification have been followed as given in the BORDA

Germany drawings and the specifications. No construction monitoring

or quality checklists exist and hence it is difficult to verify the same.

Some photos during the construction stage were made available for

the study.

Observations

Discussions with the MoCM and the Yontan County officials revealed

that they had not adopted the requirement of Styrofoam insulating

media as suggested in the BORDA drawings. This was a local decision

and they have not made any appropriate modifications. They have

also not provided the essential vent pipes for the Settler, BR and the AF

as shown in the drawings.

Photo 1 Skewed inlet pipe in BGS and larger spacing of reinforcement

in ABR and AF



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It is also understood that a baffle wall has been added within the 25

cum/day biogas dome to enhance the efficiency. This is not recorded

in the construction drawing. The reinforcement spacing appears to be

larger than the specified 120mm. (ref. D-YCNK-ST-25-BR-01). The grade

of steel used is Fe240 and not Fe415, while the concrete is M25 or lower

(likely M15) instead of M30.

In the DEWATS #3 (25 cum/day), the soil cover for frost protection was

approximately 600mm.

Photo 2 Soil cover of 600mm for frost protection

The spacing between baffle pipes was varying (between 250 and

450mm) and was also different from the specifications in drawing

(335mm). In general the level of the baffle pipes, spacing and

alignment were different from specifications.



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Photo 3 Variation in pipe spacing and alignment in anaerobic tanks

Photo 4 Variation in pipe levels in DEWATS

The drawings D-YCNK-CT 25 BR-01 has indicated 4 chambers while the

ABR module actually constructed had only two baffle chambers. This is

major deviation as they seem to have used the drawing for

homogenisation and inoculation unit instead of ABR drawing as shown

in the concept drawing D-YCNK-CT-25 CON-01.



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Photo 5 Two chamber ABR and four chambers AF in DEWATS in 25 cum

plant

The inlet pipe to the settler in the 10 cum/day DEWATS #26 and those

for the Biogas settler of DEWATS #3, #6 and #7 have been placed

perpendicular to the direction of flow, leading to a possible short circuit

of wastewater flow and causing reduction in treatment efficiency. This

is a strong non conformity from the BORDA drawing where the inlet of

Biogas Settler is located diametrically opposite to the extension

chamber.

Photo 6 Lateral entry of inlet pipe in Settlers



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The settler of DEWATS #26, doesn’t have the protective soil covering

specified for frost protection, only 250mm of soil covering was above

the ABR and AF.

Photo 7 Soil cover of 250mm for frost protection in DEWATS #26

Inspection of the outlet chambers of the structures revealed that the

outlet pipes are not constructed on the same levels. The Tee pipes

were also missing in the settler. This was also pointed out to the

accompanying MoCM team.

Photo 8 Missing tee pipes in outlet chamber



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The perforated slabs for anaerobic filter were also not as per drawings.

The photo is shown below.

Photo 9 Irregular spacing in perforated slab for AF

3.3 Commissioning

MoCM does not have records of the pre commissioning checks.

Hence, no comments could be made. On enquiry, it was learnt that no

inoculation have been carried out in the DEWATS plants. It is not clear

whether it has been approved by the Consultants.

Observation

In general the variation in spacing, level and alignment of baffle pipes,

missing Tee pipes, fixed dome cover etc could have been avoided

had a pre commissioning check was instituted prior to the

commissioning.



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Photo 10 Biogas dome constructed with a sealed cap.

3.4 Operation and Maintenance

The MoCM and the Yontan County officials did not make available the

Operation and Maintenance manual (O & M), hence no comments

could be made. They have not carried out any O & M activities till

date.

Observations

The pipe level controller at the outlet of the Horizontal Gravel Filter of

510 cum/day capacity was almost parallel to the ground, indicating

that the water level in the HGF was not maintained adequately. It was

pointed out to MoCM that the treatment efficiency is affected

adversely.

Opening the Inlet register of Biogas Settler DEWATS #7 revealed that

there were plastic bags in the manhole. The water was generally

flowing in all the 5 DEWATS which were opened randomly and no

apparent blockage was noticed.



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The inlet register of DEWATS #3 showed four pipes which was

apparently draining the wastewater from two apartments connected

to it. It was informed that two were blackwater pipes and two

greywater. The flow (around noon) also appeared to be clear with

hardly any contamination. Since the timing was during working hours, it

may indicate leaking taps. A request to inspect any one of the dwelling

units was not allowed as it was informed that all the occupants were

away at that time.

Photo 11 Caked up scum in DEWATS #10

The scum level in the settler of DEWATS #26 was found caked up. The

pipe level controller of the HGF in DEWATS #26 was vertical and the

water level was maintained about 250mm from the top of gravel. No

plants were noticed on the first day of the inspection. However, on the

subsequent visit, the Yontan officials had arranged to plant reeds on

the HGF.

Photo 12 HGF in DEWATS #26 before and after site comments



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3.5 Performance

The Academy of Science personnel have been monitoring the

performance of the DEWATS. In particular, they have monitored

DEWATS #3, #7 (both 25 cum/day) and #8 (10 cum/day) apart from

the Horizontal Gravel filter. It is learnt that they have monitored the

waste water flow by the bucket method on an hourly basis, in order to

estimate the per capita generation of wastewater. They have done

the study for four seasons. The parameters monitored include

temperature, flow volume, inlet of Settler/ biogas settler, outlet of

settler/ biogas settler, ABR and AF. The records span over a period of 15

November 2008 until 2 September 2010.

Observations

The wastewater flow data for the 25 cum/ day plant of DEWATS #3 and

#7 indicates an average of 22- 28 cum/day. Similarly the 10 cum

DEWATS #8 plant is subject to a flow varying between 8 -13 cum/day.

Apparently, the plants are overloaded hydraulically by a factor of 1.12-

1.30. This information should be interpreted cautiously as the flow

measurements have been taken at noon which is not the time of peak

flow.

The maximum and the minimum value of the effluents along with the

overall treatment efficiency at the end of AF is tabulated for the

DEWATS plant

Table 3 DEWATS effluent quality at outlet of AF and equivalent treatment

efficiency

Sl

No

DEWATS

ID

Max effluent

BOD mg/l and

date

Min effluent

BOD mg/l and

date

Maximum and

minimum overall

treatment

efficiency



17

1 7 117

(20 Oct 2010)

40

(24 Jun 2010)

24.5% - 79.4%

2 3 122

(16 August 2009)

58

(24 Jun 2010)

33% - 70.3%

3 8 129

(20 Oct 2010)

50

(10 Sep 2010)

24.5% - 79.4%

The high effluent concentration at the Anaerobic Filter outlet may result

in non conformance to the design target value of 60mg/l at the end of

the Horizontal gravel filter.

The sludge level has not been measured till date, although the settler/

Biogas settler is past its due date for desludging, especially in DEWATS

#7. An attempt was made to measure the sludge in DEWATS #3 and

26, during this evaluation, but it was unsuccessful, due to the non

availability of stiff transparent tube.

Photo 13 Attempts to measure sludge in DEWATS

About 100-150mm of thick scum was noticed at the settler, and the

sludge level appears to be low (300-500mm). The baffle reactor did not

show a major development of sludge.

There is no meter to measure the gas flow. On discussions, it was learnt

that the gas is sufficient to meet the daily needs of two families.

Photo 14 Usage of Biogas in Community Kitchen



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3.6 Capacity Building

The MoCM, team citing the design training programme in Beijing and

the onsite training received from the International consultants, claim to

be confident of designing the DEWATS independently. It was also

mentioned that during construction, they received specific training

from Mr. Bernd Ebeling and from Ms. Ina Jurga on Wetland and

greenhouse construction for DEWATS. They perceive to be confident of

building the structures; this is somehow evidenced by their replication

efforts in the 31 DEWATS. Nevertheless there are certain shortcomings as

explained earlier and areas for improvement. There is a lack of training

support in the operation and maintenance aspects as well, especially

for troubleshooting. At this stage the Operation & Maintenance seems

to be limited to maintenance of sewer lines.

Observations

The MoCM team, Academy of Sciences and Yontan County Authorities

demonstrated keen interest in developing their individual capacities. A

striking point was that each of the members were referring to the notes

and learning’s of the Beijing training program and also tips and

suggestion given by the visiting consultants. In the present context,

when it was pointed out that the plants were missing in the PGF of

DEWATS #10, they promptly planted the reeds. This was noticed during

a surprise inspection following the remark.

Similarly, although the transparent tube was not available for the

sludge measurement, the Yontan County authorities fabricated a

make shift tube from a waste tube light. Although it did not work, it

shows the ingenuity and interest of the team.

Photo 15 Ingenious sludge gauge fabricated with fluorescent tube



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4 Lessons learnt

Decentralized wastewater Treatment Systems which does not use

electricity or chemicals and which has minimum maintenance

requirements is the appropriate system for a country like DPRK. It is very

clear from the evaluation that MoCM has rightly chosen this

technology for management of the wastewater. The efforts of UNICEF

support for the same is also commendable. The following are few other

lessons learnt from this mission:

• There is a mismatch between the computed organic pollution loads

and the actual values observed during operation. This increase in the

pollutant loads will result in the decrease of de-sludging period. The

effluent quality at outlet of wetland would also be higher than target

values.

• Some aspects provided in the drawings were not conformed during

the construction. Certain deviations from the drawing were also made.

The use of insulation to minimise the temperature effects has not been

complied with. Similarly, the 600 mm frost cover is also not maintained.

This shall affect the quality of treatment.

• The soil cover, skewed inlet pipes, reduced number of baffled

chambers, sealed biogas cover slab, etc indicate that a structured

Pre-commissioning checks were not instituted resulting in the non-

conformity has occurred. The consequence would be lower treatment

efficiency. This is an important omission which needs to be addressed

when further such systems are being commissioned.



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• Lack of O&M activities is affecting the systems. Immediate steps to

undertake O&M should be undertaken.

5 Recommendations

It is understood that UNICEF and MoCM are planning to replicate the

project in other parts of the country. It is recommended that the

following areas could be improved.

Design

a) The grade of concrete which is likely to have been adopted in DPRK is

M25 (Fck- 25 N/sqmm or 25 Mpa) or lower, instead of the specified

M30. Similarly it appears from the construction photos, that the

reinforcement used is of the grade Fe240 (Fy -240 N/sqmm or 240MPa)

instead of Fe 415. The structural designs have to be adjusted

accordingly. This would realise considerable savings in costs and aid to

the safety of the structure. The designs have to be prepared by the

local engineers in accordance to the prevailing standards.

b) No detail construction information was available from MoCM sighting

that analysis of cost effectiveness of the intervention is not within the

remit of the evaluation. However when checked with UNICEF they

could provide some ballpark figure for the pilot DEWATS. The total cost

was about 650,000 USD with approximately 100,000 being used for

technical support, supervision and training abroad for MoCM

engineers. The actual cost of material support is in the range of 550,000

USD. With 10,000 population as current beneficiaries, the per capita

material cost of 55 USD is very expensive. In addition the plant

becomes even less cost effective because of apparently very little gas

production and no reuse of final effluent for irrigating crops for added

economic value to the infrastructure. The typical DEWATS for a small

town of 5,000 population costs about 140,000 USD in India (per capita

cost of ~28 USD) including all the material and manpower cost.

c) The wastewater generation from each house is nearly 2.6 times lower

than that assumed in the design. The sewer pipe diameter could

therefore be down sized appropriately, leading to substantial cost

savings.

d) There are several opportunities for the designer to optimise in cost and

enhance the technical efficiency. One situation would be to combine

the RC walls by overlapping adjacent DEWATS modules, instead of

constructing as depicted in the earlier photos.



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Construction

a) The spacing between the reinforcement has to be ensured as per

design and specifications. The designer would have to certify that the

drawings have been followed for each of the project stage.

b) The interfaces between brick and RCC have to be tied properly by use

of dowels. All the corners have to be chamfered with cement mortar

to aid the bonding and ensure water tightness.

c) Any construction deviations/ modification should be authorised by the

local structural designer and the drawings modified. A typical example

is the biogas settler where the RCC structure is different from the

drawing D-YCNK-BS-ST-01.

d) The frost cover should be as specified in the design.

e) A set of “As built drawings” should be prepared for each project for

easy reference in future and better operation and maintenance.

Commissioning

a) A commissioning checklist should be prepared documenting all the

stage wise inspection, photographic evidence of conformance to all

critical stages and signed of by a designated person. Completion of

the checklist should precede the commissioning of the project.

Operation and maintenance

a) An Operation and maintenance manual should be

developed/modified detailing all the project parameters. The

frequency of monitoring, cleaning of sewer lines, manholes, desludging

etc should be spelt out in the O & M manual. Training should be

provided to the designated personnel and the records of such O & M

measures should be maintained.



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Performance

The results of the ongoing performance monitoring however, gives an

ambiguous picture of the efficiency of DEWATS.

A more structured and logical monitoring programme has to be followed.

a) The BOD of the inlet wastewater is apparently weak but the

connected person equivalent reported by MoCM is nearly three

fold. This is virtually impossible. The values have to be rechecked

and substantiated. It should be verified whether all the family

members reported to have access to DEWATS are actually using

the pour flush toilets connected to the DEWATS.

b) Similarly, the claim that the daily gas production is sufficient for two

houses has to be verified using a gas meter. There was no offensive

smell when the DEWATS #26, which had no vent pipe was opened

which is surprising. The gas production in the Biogas settler is

proportional to the treatment efficiency, inlet BOD concentration

and the formation of sludge. The Academy of Science personnel

have to recognise this fact while interpreting the results.

c) The sampling should cover the time of peak flow. The wastewater

quantity should be compared to the quantity of water supplied

from all sources- Gravity fed water supply and any other sources.

d) The quality of water in the receiving body should be measured

upstream of the discharge point and also on the downstream.

Similarly, in case hand pumps are available, the ground water

quality could be measured routinely. This will help in demonstrating

the utility of the DEWATS in controlling the water pollution.

e) Simple tools like the sludge gauge, ice box for transporting BOD

bottles, Samplers etc should be provided for the monitoring

personnel.



23

Capacity building

a) Some more technical training has to be carried out either by in-

house local staff or international resources in the area of design,

construction, quality control and performance monitoring. This is

particularly important to make the plant more cost effective and

operation efficient. A procedure for inducting new members into

the project should be developed and followed.

b) A strong focus should be provided for carrying out Social awareness

on the benefits of DEWATS in the community. Thrust should be given

on highlighting the fertilising effects of the treated effluent and the

sludge in irrigation, as compared to use of human excreta as

compost and also the saving in water usage, the impact of Biogas

in improving Indoor air quality as compared to the traditional

burning of coal. Sustained sensitisation would go a long way in

maximising the benefits of the Decentralised waste water

treatment.

6 Conclusions

The UNICEF –MoCM DEWATS project is a commendable effort to

protect the quality of groundwater and the river. The construction of 31

DEWATS locally is also the evidence of the great team effort. The

evaluation report highlights the observations, its impact on the success

of the DEWATS project.

However, the most important observation is on the cost optimization of

the plants, which needs attention. The Indian experiences have proved

that DEWATS can be constructed at much lower costs and thus

popularizing it. Regular structured monitoring of the project can further

bring down the costs by improvising the designs to suit the local

conditions. It would be advisable to additional hands on training for the

design of DEWATS and also in construction, operation and

maintenance of new DEWATS. This could be supported with the help of

international expertise.

The DEWATS being an engineering project, the evaluator does not find

it right to comment/ gloss over things which are done in conformance

to the designs and drawing provided by BORDA. However, it should be



24

considered that if it is not particularly pointed out, then the

specifications have been generally adhered to by all the stakeholders.

Hence the focus has been primarily on deficiencies and areas of

improvement.

The non conformances which have been highlighted should be taken

in the right technical spirit and the team is advised to apply it globally

to all the new projects in order to avoid recurrence and also enhance

the utility of the DEWATS plant.

7 References

a) Technical report on Design of Decentralised Wastewater Treatment

Technologies in DPRK: Pilot Project in Yontan County Town.

b) BORDA Germany drawings for DEWATS – 10 cum/day and 25 cum/day

c) DEWATS Analysis data provided by Academy of Sciences

d) Photographs provided by MoCM

e) Discussion with UNICEF, MoCM, AoS and Yontan County Authorities

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