open defecation open defecation open defecation is the human practice of defecating outside ("in the open") rather than into a toilet. people may choose fields, bushes, forests, ditches, streets, canals, or other open spaces for defecation. they do so either because they do not have a toilet readily accessible or due to traditional cultural practices. the practice is common where sanitation infrastructure and services are not available. even if toilets are available, behavior change efforts may still be needed to promote the use of toilets. 'open defecation free' (odf) is a term used to describe communities that have shifted to using toilets instead of open defecation. this can happen, for example, after community-led total sanitation programs have been implemented. sanitation facilities coverage worldwide from 2000 to 2015 (the orange line is the data for open defecation). part of a series onpollutionair pollution from a factory air acid rain air quality index atmospheric dispersion modeling chlorofluorocarbon exhaust gas haze indoor air internal combustion engine global dimming global distillation ozone depletion particulates persistent organic pollutant smog aerosol soot volatile organic compound biological biological hazard genetic introduced species (invasive species) digital information electromagnetic light ecological overillumination radio spectrum natural ozone radium and radon in the environment volcanic ash wildfire noise transportation land water air rail sustainable transport urban sonar marine mammals and 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lines traffic signs vandalism war chemical warfare herbicidal warfare (agent orange) nuclear holocaust (nuclear fallout - nuclear famine - nuclear winter) scorched earth unexploded ordnance war and environmental law water agricultural wastewater diseases eutrophication firewater freshwater groundwater hypoxia industrial wastewater marine debris monitoring nonpoint source see misc section nutrient ocean acidification oil spill pharmaceuticals freshwater salinization septic tanks sewage septic tanks pit latrine shipping stagnation sulfur water surface runoff turbidity urban runoff water quality misc point source area source legacy pollution lists diseases law by country most polluted cities least polluted cities by pm2.5 treaties categories by country environment portal ecology portal open defecation can pollute the environment and cause health problems and diseases. high levels of open defecation are linked to high child mortality, poor nutrition, poverty, and large disparities between rich and poor.: 11 ending open defecation is an indicator being used to measure progress towards the sustainable development goal number 6. extreme poverty and lack of sanitation are statistically linked. therefore, eliminating open defecation is thought to be an important part of the effort to eliminate poverty. as of 2019 an estimated 673 million people practice open defecation,: 74 down from about 892 million people (12 percent of the global population) in 2016. in that year, 76 percent (678 million) of the people practicing open defecation in the world lived in just seven countries. overview in ancient times, there were more open spaces and less population pressure on land. it was believed that defecating in the open causes little harm when done in areas with low population, forests, or camping-type situations. with development and urbanization, open defecating started becoming a challenge and thereby an important public health issue, and an issue of human dignity. with the increase in population in smaller areas, such as cities and towns, more attention was given to hygiene and health. as a result, there was an increase in global attention towards reducing the practice of open defecation. open defecation perpetuates the vicious cycle of disease and poverty and is widely regarded as an affront to personal dignity. the countries where open defecation is most widely practiced have the highest numbers of deaths of children under the age of five, as well as high levels of undernutrition, high levels of poverty, and large disparities between people of means and the poor. indiscriminate waste dumping and open defecation, shadda, cap-haitien, haiti open defecation along a riverbank in bujumbura, burundi child defecating in the open in a canal in the slum of gege in the city of ibadan, nigeria open defecation, tirin kowt bazaar, afghanistan terminology the term "open defecation" became widely used in the water, sanitation, and hygiene (wash) sector from about 2008 onwards. this was due to the publications by the joint monitoring programme for water supply and sanitation (jmp) and the un international year of sanitation. the jmp is a joint program by who and unicef that was earlier tasked to monitor the water and sanitation targets of the millennium development goals (mdgs); it is now tasked to monitor sustainable development goal number 6. for monitoring of the mdg number 7, two categories were created: 1) improved sanitation and (2) unimproved sanitation. open defecation falls into the category of unimproved sanitation. this means that people who practice open defecation do not have access to improved sanitation. in 2013 world toilet day was celebrated as an official un day for the first time. the term "open defecation" was used in high-level speeches, that helped to draw global attention to this issue (for example, in the "call to action" on sanitation issued by the deputy secretary-general of the united nations in march 2013). open defecation free "open defecation free" (odf) is a phrase first used in community-led total sanitation (clts) programs. odf has now entered use in other contexts. the original meaning of odf stated that all community members are using sanitation facilities (such as toilets) instead of going to the open for defecation. this definition was improved and more criteria were added in some countries that have adopted the clts approach in their programs to stop the practice of open defecation. the indian ministry of drinking water and sanitation in mid-2015 defined odf as "the termination of fecal-oral transmission, defined by: no visible feces found in the environment or village and every household as well as public/community institutions using safe technology option for disposal of feces". here, a "safe technology option" means a toilet that contains feces so that there is no contamination of surface soil, groundwater or surface water; flies or animals do not come in contact with the open feces; no one handles excreta; there is no smell and there are no visible feces around in the environment. this definition is part of the swachh bharat abhiyan (clean india campaign). reasons the reasons for open defecation are varied. it can be a voluntary, semi-voluntary or involuntary choice. most of the time, a lack of access to a toilet is the reason. however, in some places even people with toilets in their houses prefer to defecate in the open. a few broad factors that result in the practice of open defecation are listed below. no toilet lack of infrastructure: people often lack toilets in their houses, or in the areas where they live. lack of toilets in other places: lack of toilets in places away from people's houses, such as in schools or in the farms leads the people to defecate in the open. another example is a lack of public toilets in cities, whether by a reluctance among businesses to allow patrons to use their toilets or limited hours (e.g. if there are no 24-hour businesses in town and someone needs to use the toilet after regular business hours), which can be a big problem for homeless people. use of toilets for other purposes: in some rural communities, toilets are used for other purposes, such as storing household items, animals, farm products or used as kitchens. in such cases, people go outside to defecate. uncomfortable or unsafe toilet a pit latrine with failing superstructure in zambia. poor quality of toilet: sometimes people have access to a toilet, but the toilet might be broken, or of poor quality – outdoor toilets (pit latrines in particular) typically are devoid of any type of cleaning and reek of odors. sometimes, toilets are not well lit at all times, especially in areas that lack electricity. others lack doors or may not have water. toilets with maggots or cockroaches are also disliked by people and hence, they go out to defecate. risky and unsafe: some toilets are risky to access. there may be a risk to personal safety due to lack of lights at night, criminals around them, or the presence of animals such as snakes and dogs. women and children who do not have toilets inside their houses are often found to be scared to access shared or public toilets, especially at night. accessing toilets that are not located in the house might be a problem for disabled people, especially at night. in some parts of the world, zambia for example, very young children are discouraged from using pit latines due to the risk of them falling through the open drop-hole. in such cases when there is no other available sanitation facility, children are encouraged to practice open defecation. presence of toilet but not privacy: some toilets do not have a real door, but have a cloth hung as a door. in some communities, toilets are located in places where women are shy to access them due to the presence of men. lack of water near toilet: absence of supply of water inside or next to toilets cause people to get water from a distance before using the toilet. this is an additional task and needs extra time. too many people using a toilet: this is especially true in the case of shared or public toilets. if too many people want to use a toilet at the same time, then some people may go outside to defecate instead of waiting. in some cases, people might not be able to wait due to diarrhea (or the result of an inflammatory bowel disease emergency). fear of the pit getting filled: in some places, people are scared that their toilet pits will get filled very fast if all family members use them every day. so they continue to go out to delay the toilet pit filling up. this is especially true in the case of a pit latrine. unrelated to toilet infrastructure lack of awareness: people in some communities do not know about the benefits of using toilets. lack of behavior change: some communities have toilets, yet people prefer to defecate in the open. in some cases, these toilets are provided by the government or other organizations and the people do not like them, or do not value them. they continue to defecate in the open. also, older people are often found to defecate in the open and they are hesitant to change their behavior and go inside a closed toilet. prefer being in nature: this happens mostly in less populated or rural areas, where people walk outside early in the morning and go to defecate in the fields or bushes. they prefer to be in nature and the fresh air; instead of defecating in a closed space such as a toilet. there may be a cultural or habitual preference for defecating "in the open air", beside a local river or stream, or even the bush. combining open defecation with other activities: some people walk early in the morning to look after their farms. some consider it a social activity, especially women who like to take some time to go out of their homes. while on their way to the fields for open defecation they can talk to other women and take care of their animals. social norms: open defecation is a part of people's life and daily habits in some regions. for instance, a 2011 survey in rural east java, indonesia, found that many men considered the practice ‘normal’, and having distinct benefits such as social interaction and physical comfort. in some cultures, there may be social taboos where a father-in-law may not use the same