SaTo Toilet Pan Brings Safe Sanitation to Rural Haiti

These Haitian siblings ― residents of Pierre Payen, Haiti ― are beaming with pride. They were the first.

The first home in Friendship Village with no flying insects spreading dangerous diseases to their family.

Also, the first residents in their village to live free from a latrine stench pervading their living quarters.

The first family in Haiti to have a revolutionary SaTo sanitary toilet pan installed in their home. And have their quality of life forever improved. On July 11, 2014, this Haitian banana harvester, Edline, and her family became owners of the first SaTo hygienic toilet pan installed in the Western Hemisphere.

The SaTo sanitary toilet pan was invented by plumbing manufacturer American Standard Brands initially for use in rural Bangladesh. It closes off pit latrines from the open air, reducing the transmission of disease via air-borne insects. Here in this village in Haiti, half a world away from Bangladesh, the SaTo toilet pan serves the same purpose.

With several small children, this household ― located 90 miles outside the island nation’s capital of Port o Prince ― was in desperate need of an improved sanitation device. Like most residents, this family was using an open latrine when going to the bathroom. Located inside their home, the latrine emitted an unpleasant odor while allowing insects to easily come into contact with the human waste. This led to the spread of disease from the pathogens transmitted from the insects to the family members.

Nearly all of the villagers attended this historic SaTo installation. It symbolized an important step forward in improving sanitation in a nation still reconstructing two years after this devastating natural disaster. Aside from learning about the SaTo pan’s benefits, residents were educated on basic plumbing tips. They were instructed how to keep all open sewer lines tightly capped and extend the latrine vent well above the roof line of their homes.This initial SaTo pan was installed by American Standard’s Jim McHale, Ph.D., who serves as the Company’s global sanitation products business unit leader. McHale accompanied volunteers from Plumbers Without Borders to Haiti in July 2014 to determine if the SaTo pans would be useful in improving sanitation facilities in that country. He visited with 40 families in Friendship Village, a community developed and built by NGO Food for the Poor to provide shelter for the victims of the 2010 Haitian earthquake.

In 2014, American Standard will be donating more than 7,900 SaTo pans for use in homes, schools and tent cities in Haiti. Food for the Poor will assist with the pan distribution to villages throughout the nation. This effort will help Haiti’s residents rebuild with safer sanitation facilities and an improved quality of life, one SaTo at a time.

SaTo™ is a registered trademark of American Standard Brands.

Source: SaTo Stories: SaTo Toilet Pan Brings Safe Sanitation to Rural Haiti