FACT SHEET

The project implemented urine-harvesting urinals at a school and administrative office in Bind Block, Bihar, and conducted field trials to compare treated urine with NPK chemical fertilizers. Results showed that urine provided similar or better crop yields for vegetables and fruits, while offering a free alternative that could save a family approximately 4,000 rupees annually. By framing urine as a valuable resource rather than waste, the project aimed to overcome social and caste-based barriers to sanitation adoption in rural India.

• Agricultural field trials demonstrated that treated urine is a safe and effective substitute for commercial NPK fertilizers, producing similar or superior yields across various crops including cabbage, aubergine, chillies, tomato, and okra.
• Human urine is a nutrient-rich resource; the annual combined excreta of one family contains plant nutrients roughly equivalent to 50 kg of urea and 50 kg of NPK, with urine containing about 90% of the nitrogen, 65% of the phosphorus, and 73% of the potassium.
• The project successfully used the economic value of urine to overcome social and attitudinal barriers to sanitation, specifically the traditional association of excreta handling with low-caste Dalits.
• To ensure safety and comply with World Health Organization guidelines for the local climate in Bind, urine was stored in 500-litre collection tanks for at least one month before application.

APA

Stockholm Environment Institute (2014). FACT SHEET. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/sei-fs-2014-biharecosan-bind.pdf

Chicago

Stockholm Environment Institute. FACT SHEET. 2014. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/sei-fs-2014-biharecosan-bind.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Stockholm Environment Institute |title=FACT SHEET |date=2014 |url=https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/sei-fs-2014-biharecosan-bind.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{stockholmenvironmentinstitute2014fact, author = {{Stockholm Environment Institute}}, title = {{FACT SHEET}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2014}, url = {https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/sei-fs-2014-biharecosan-bind.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }