Expanding Climate-Positive Sanitation in Haiti

We at SOIL are always working to develop innovative approaches to support our growth strategy and further expand our reach to provide accessible, sustainable and reliable sanitation to those that need it the most. Research plays a critical role in SOIL’s efforts to achieve strategic goals and advance knowledge in the sanitation sector. This year has started off very busy for SOIL’s Research team, as we are working on a number of ongoing research projects including; small-scale black soldier fly larvae experiments, improving collections with human-centered design and utilizing aeration to make the waste-to-compost process more efficient. We’re pleased to introduce our latest research project: windrow composting!          

One of our goals this year is to make the composting process faster, so that we can treat and transform more waste in order to accommodate more customers and growth. However, finding land for waste treatment is difficult, so as much as possible we want to grow within our existing site. This means we need to be able to treat more waste in the same space we currently use, so we have to get creative! In order to do so, the SOIL team is testing different composting methods that could potentially transform waste into compost faster, thereby increasing the rate of turnover. Windrow composting involves emptying containers into a pile on the ground (and elongating it into a row), as an alternative to the bins we currently use for composting. Then, the pile must be turned at least once a week to increase aeration and decomposition. Improving the efficiency of the composting process will help us to accommodate more waste and help us decrease operational costs, moving us closer to a financially sustainable business model!

In collaboration (and solidarity) with the Operations and Research teams, SOIL’s Human Resources Director, Wisner and Director of Operations, Djimitri, partook in the experiment and helped empty 500 containers! The waste treatment team at our composting site in Mouchinette really appreciate when managers and other SOIL employees come to the site, because they are proud of their work and how much physical strength it requires. Knowing that the managers value their work is always a great moral booster and makes for a happy and efficient operational team!

The team will continue to monitor the pile daily and turn it following a specific schedule, designed to maximize aeration at the beginning of the process, when the microbes require the most oxygen to work. We’re hoping to bring the managers and office teams to the compost site more often to take part in operations as part of an exercise to increase understanding of SOIL’s work across teams and build up enhanced collaboration throughout the organization. Stay tuned for more updates on our compost research!

As we continue to grow and expand our services in Haiti, we recognize the need to keep improving our operational efficiency. The SOIL team is continuously researching and testing new ways to provide better and more efficient sanitation solutions. Covid-19 created unprecedented challenges to organizations like ours, that rely on community field agents to provide goods and services to vulnerable populations in emerging markets. Thanks to the TaroWorks mobile field service app, we’ve been able to provide uninterrupted sanitation services to the communities we serve in Haiti during these uncertain times.

SOIL began using TaroWork’s digital tools in 2016, to collect payments, manage customer accounts, conduct research, and test marketing strategies. Since then, we’ve been using the data collected to optimize our logistics and make refinements to EkoLakay, like rolling out a mobile payment collection service. When the pandemic began, SOIL anticipated having to bring in temporary waste collectors to supplement field agents who might fall ill. While full-time staff had memorized collection routes, these fill-in team members needed a way to navigate collection routes quickly and efficiently.

According to Erica, SOIL’s R&D Director, during that time, we were also working with DataKind to develop software that would optimize collection route efficiency to allow for future expansion. The DataKind software, along with the TaroWorks app, gave the fill-in waste collectors access to turn-by-turn directions, allowing them to complete collection regardless of their knowledge of customers or neighborhoods. At the same time, this approach reduced collection time and lowered transportation costs.    

In addition to helping the waste collectors quickly learn their collection routes, the TaroWorks app also increased our operational efficiency by decreasing overall mileage by 5%, even while the service grew by over 100 households. At SOIL, we are very conscious about greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and our Research team continuously works to analyze and reduce the GHGs emitted from all of our processes, from composting human waste to driving vehicles. By working to improve the efficiency of our collection routes we are cutting down any unnecessary emissions from our vehicles.  

We’re honored to work alongside innovative and collaborative organizations like TaroWorks and DataKind, that are equally driven to provide meaningful solutions to some of the world’s most pressing challenges and are extremely thankful to have these tools on hand as a critical component of our COVID-19 response plan.