Sense and sanitation

Abstract

Historically, sanitation infrastructures have been designed to do away with sensory experiences. As in the present phase of modernity the senses are assigned a crucial role in the perception of risks, a paradigm shift has emerged in the infrastructural provision of energy, water and waste services. This has led to a partial re-localization and resensitization of services. Present systems are designed to make the invisible visible again. This chapter analyzes what these tendencies mean for waste water and sanitation service provision. It outlines the paradigm shifts being made in infrastructural provision and its consequences for the senses, using case studies of sanitation innovation in Europe to illustrate new dynamics in the display and perception of sanitation infrastructures. Based on a theoretical discussion of sensitization of infrastructural service provisions, a framework is presented for analyzing the possible relationships between senses and sanitation. © 2010 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.