By Marina Grossi
The latest edition of the Trata Brasil Institute's research revealed that 61,52% of the sewage generated in the 100 largest Brazilian cities does not receive adequate treatment. In other words, cities with more than 300,000 inhabitants discharge 3.2 billion cubic meters of sewage every day, the equivalent of 3,500 Olympic swimming pools. In addition to alerting society to these significant and unacceptable numbers, Trata Brasil's research indicates that we are slowly moving towards the goal of universalizing the distribution of drinking water and sewage collection and treatment.
Whether from an economic or socio-environmental point of view, in addition to ethical commitment, there is no shortage of arguments for society to prioritize basic sanitation. The discharge of billions of liters of untreated sewage into the environment, contaminating groundwater, rivers, lakes, mangroves and the most biodiversity-rich areas of the sea, causes losses of environmental assets, producing undesirable impacts on the social and economic planes: a drop in fishing activity and tourism, the incidence of waterborne diseases and increased costs with the addition of chemical products in water collection and treatment plants, among other consequences.
It is estimated that 217,000 workers have to take time off work each year due to gastrointestinal problems. Children who live in areas without basic sanitation have, on average, an academic performance 18.7% lower than that of those who live in healthy areas. This does not take into account the drop in production due to hours not worked and the loss due to the drop in academic performance.
The economic and social benefits of investing in sanitation go beyond reducing the losses mentioned. For every R$1 million invested in sewage works, 30 direct jobs and 20 indirect jobs are created, not counting the demand for labor when the system goes into operation. The efforts of experts to concretely quantify the benefits of investing in sanitation should serve as a stimulus to change the behavior of politicians and mobilize society on the issue. The excessive concentration of sanitation works projects in the government sector is certainly one of the most important reasons why we are moving so slowly towards the goal of universalizing the service.
According to estimates from the National Basic Sanitation Plan, we will need to invest R$302 billion by 2033 to reach the target. However, the average annual investment has remained between R$15 billion and R$16 billion, which corresponds to half of the necessary resources. There are also management problems. A study by Trata Brasil, which monitors the implementation of 138 large sanitation projects in municipalities with more than 500,000 inhabitants, found that only 147% of the works had been completed by December 2012.
If we add the low average investment to the slow implementation of projects, we run the risk of seriously compromising the deadline for achieving the goal proposed in the national plan. It is necessary and possible to find legal and political mechanisms that allow greater participation of the business sector and civil institutions in this process. These new partners will be able to provide technology, investment and the capacity to mobilize society. It is estimated that it could take 40 years or more for all Brazilians to have access to sanitation, 20 years longer than the government's current plans.
Source: Brasil Econômico
