Formation Process and Maintenance of Public
Restrooms in Beijing
Kenta Kitsuka
Institute of Environmental Studies, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences,
The University of Tokyo
Background
In Beijing, each household does not have a restroom, but several
families share a public restroom on the street instead. Most of
such restrooms are old vault toilet without even hand-wash spaces.
Does this system show the lack of technology or recognition of
government in this capital of China which already has attained
economic development? This understanding is incorrect because there
could be a social background, different from those of Japan and
other advanced countries.
Change
of night-soil disposal system
After
the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949,
city of Beijing has taken charge of the night-soil treatment
which
had traditionally been handled by the guild.
In the 1960's, the measure to set restrooms outside of a garden
was being promoted. In Beijing, public restrooms were built along
the Futon (alley); the restrooms
within the courtyard houses were filled up and then changed to be living spaces.
At present, vacuum
cars treat the night-soil of public restrooms. The inhabitants have continued
to use the place as before, since the origin of the system was
formed in the 60's.
Cleaning and management of public restrooms
There are two types of restrooms in the research zone: "Category 2" (new
and relatively good quality) and "Category 3" (old type).
The public restrooms of category 3 are cleaned every morning and afternoon.
The walls and floor are cleaned with detergent, and rinsed. Night-soils within
the
lavatory are washed out into the underground tank.
The public rest rooms of category 2 have caretaker's room; two persons (typically
a wedded pair) live in the building and take charge in the cleaning and management
during the predetermined hours (e.g., 5:30-24:00). Generally, such caretakers
keep the restroom very clean without deciding the number of times for cleaning.
The future measures for public restrooms in Beijing
Beijing plans to improve restrooms from category 3 into category
2.
The post of caretakers of the restroom will fulfill the following
functions:
1) Rest for migrant workers
2) Employment and
3) Sanitary requirements necessary for restrooms of category 2.
Conclusion
This study clarified the formation process of public restrooms
in Beijing, as well as the present utilization and management status.
The system seemingly strange to us in the city area of developed country,
offers the rationality responding to the needs of Chinese social environment. |
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[Background
of the research 2] |
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[Cleaning and
maintenance of public restrooms] |
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[Cleaning
and maintenance of public restrooms] |
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[Night-soil
recovery system, in the late Qing Dynasty and People's
Republic of China] |
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[Present
highly densed residential area (Dong Su, Sheng Yu Kou)] |
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Floating People in Tokyo
Toru Takahashi
Department of Architecture, Graduate School of Engineering, Hosei University
The
floating people were lived in Tokyo that used to be called a water
city. They lived on ships, engaged in one of the urban functions,
ship transportation.
Many of those people worked for the transportation on a barge, moving the cargo
from the freight-traffic line to a work boat, then transporting it to a discharging
place or a factory. In a living space called "Seji" with a two or three
tatami mats wide, they lived with their families. In 1935 (the 10th year of Showa),
the water police reported that there were 18,286 floating people/7,650 families.
When looking at concentrated cambers with barges on the map of the period, the
spatial structure can be classified into four types: freight-traffic line station,
warehouses, factory area, and wharf. The case of freight-traffic line station
was found in Iidabashi station along the Kanda river, in the area around Akihabara
station, and in Sumidagawa station. Sumidagawa station had closely linked with
ship transportation, and its platform was located parallel with the canal. The
cargo could be quickly transferred from a barge to the railway. The water transportation
and land transportation coexisted, and the developing city was supported by those
floating people.
The water police station and water townhouse supported floating people. In addition
to the routine works, the water police took care of such people, closely linked
with their lives. The water townhouse took charge of the office works such as
ancestral register of floating people, as well as provided various supports such
as wedding, medical care, etc. For responding to the needs of floating people
who changed the living places day by day, the supporting ship was navigating
and offered free medical care.
We can see the traces of the landscape where floating people were living in the
waterfront area of the city. Especially, many boats were moored in the Tsuki-shima
River, giving depth to the urban landscape. However, such river is very rare
at present. The number of moored ships and the way of use are varied by the jurisdiction
of the river. The lumber company along the Asashio canal acquired the right for
site water surface and the operating permission from Ports and Harbors Bureau
and has occupied the river as working place. A part of the working place was
fixed to the bank and bottom of the river, and another part was floating tied
with 50cm square timber, presenting a view like an Asian waterfront.
The presentation clarified the spatial structure of Tokyo's waterfront in the
modern and early Showa period, when many floating people were living; especially,
utilization of the water space, spatial structure and formation process of Tukuda,
Tsuki-shima, Kachidoki, with rich remnants of the period.
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|
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[Floating
people living on a boat] |
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[Cambers and
number of boats in Tokyo (1932)] |
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[Facilities
for floating people] |
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[Moored
ships at Tsukishima (2004)] |
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[The
lumber company on Asashio canal (2004) ] |
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