NATIONAL FOREWORD

This Indian Standard which is identical with ISO 24521 : 2016 ‘Activities relating to drinking water and wastewater services — Guidelines for the management of basic on-site domestic wastewater services’ issued by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) was adopted by the Bureau of Indian Standards on recommendation of the Environment Protection Sectional Committee and approval of the Chemical Division Council.

Management of on-site domestic wastewater services requires an understanding of the biological processes at work, the factors that can inhibit those processes and the means of ensuring those processes are functioning. It also involves a general understanding by the wider community served of the benefits of sanitation system use and management. In this way, the sanitation facilities work efficiently and help sustain the community in which they are located. Management of the services is often considered to be the responsibility of the relevant authority, whether it is local or supported by larger scale water utilities. However, in many instances, the management of the basic on-site domestic wastewater services is the responsibility of the user in collaboration with the local authorities.

Many of these basic on-site sanitation systems are located near or adjacent to sanitation services, under professional supervision and operation. In many cases, the basic on-site systems can be supported by the nearby larger scale wastewater services, for example, through the collection of wastewater or partially treated sanitary effluents for further treatment/disposal in the larger facility. This symbiotic relationship provides an opportunity for small scale sanitation facilities without needing to host all the technology or experienced wastewater treatment systems and staff on-site. In other cases, the management of the large scale facility can provide supervisory technical services to the neighboring basic system operators, to help train and ensure effective treatment levels.

This Indian Standard provides guidelines on the management of basic on-site domestic wastewater services with a focus on improving hygiene, taking into account social norms through stakeholder communication, management of assets and better management of human waste and wastewater.

The text of ISO Standard has been approved as suitable for publication as an Indian Standard without deviations. Certain terminologies and conventions are, however, not identical to those used in Indian Standards. Attention is particularly drawn to the following:

a) Wherever the words ‘International Standard’ appear referring to this standard, they should be read as ‘Indian Standard’.

b) Comma (,) has been used as a decimal marker, while in Indian Standards, the current practice is to use a point (.) as the decimal marker.