The canton of San Pablo is in the central zone of the Greater Metropolitan Area of the Central Valley of Costa Rica, in the province of Heredia. As of 2011 the population is 27,671.

Onsite sanitation is used by 85% of the population. Emptying services are provided by independent providers many of whom operate in the informal sector and don’t comply with local laws for these services, consequently they dispose sludge directly into drains or the river. The remaining 15% are connected to a sewer network. However, there is no centralized wastewater collection and treatment system, hence most of the wastewater is discharged untreated into streams and bodies of water.

The SFD graphic shows that 19% of the excreta generated is safely managed and the balance is unsafely managed. Nearly all the safely managed excreta are from faecal sludge treated at the treatment plant. The unsafely managed excreta are from faecal sludge not delivered to treatment (40%), faecal sludge not emptied from unsafe systems (24%), and wastewater not delivered to treatment (13%).

• Prepared by: GIZ
• Date of production: 16/01/2023
• Last update: 27/07/2023