Sludge Softening by water.

Forever Sanitation’s standard operating practice, which has evolved over the past four years, starts by adding up to two drums of water to the pit to soften the sludge. The sludge is then broken up and mixed using wooden poles, and any solid waste is removed with rakes and spades. A Gulper is then used to remove the first couple of metres from the top of the pit, beyond which it cannot function effectively. The remaining sludge is then scooped out using a cut down three-liter plastic container suspended on rope, which is effective down to about 6m. The whole operation usually takes about three hours, but can take up to ten hours for difficult pits. It is hard work, carried out by a team of two people – one to empty the sludge and the other to transfer it to the truck parked on an accessible road – but there is little alternative in places that vacuum trucks cannot access.