Alrighty...most of us squirm in our seats when we encounter words like "humanure". Even without consulting a dictionary, it's pretty clear what the homogenized term is referring to, and in our culture, we generally prefer to operate with an out of sight, out of mind policy. Of course, uttering yellow and mellow in the same sentence is not nearly as bad as mentioning another color that rhymes with the phase "flush it down," but either way, those who dare to say either out loud are prone to derogatory earth-hugging expletives capable of transforming good-natured hearts of green into piles of non-biodegradable ooze.
Nevertheless, there are compelling reasons why we should all seriously consider shunning a traditional toilet in favor of composting system. Following the passing of the US Energy Policy Act of 1992, porcelain thrones manufactured from 1994 and on were required to use just 1.6 gallons of water per flush - which seems like a vast improvement on their 3.4 gallon predecessors) - but the average U.S. citizen still manages to use between 80-100 gallons of water per day, with common households flushing a minimum of 5000 times each year. Wow...that's a sizable amount of H20 trickling down the drain. In direct contrast, utilizing an alternative water-free waste composting system alleviates the need for water along with energy - it is essentially an off-the-grid way to take care of business, cutting out the typical CO2 associated with the transportation and processing of waste water.
Putting the imagined stigmas surrounding this alternative waste disposal method aside, when you follow the proper sawdust layering steps, no scent is released and the accumulated material can be used for tomorrow's gardening gold. Containing a high percentage of soil-augmenting nutrients like nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium, carbon, and calcium, as long as humanure is sufficiently heated and cured to kill all existing pathogens, it can be safely applied to crops, landscaping materials or simply turned under the ground. The real question is...would any of us willingly consume fruits and vegetables that thrived from the raw nutrients provided via our bodily waste? That would indeed be a tough pill to swallow, but why? All of us have gamely eaten countless tomatoes and assorted greenery that soaked up the benefits of cow and sheep manure forever and a day...perhaps it's true what they say about ignorance being bliss.
Here in the states, Chicago's Humble Pile is embracing this alternative humanure gardening nutrient recovery resource with gusto in an effort to, "save fuel, eradicate certain forms of pollution, save hundreds of thousands of gallons of water and create rich fertile soil rather than parched earth" and other projects around the world have long converted human waste into biofuel. What are the real stumbling blocks preventing our culture from shifting over to non-water toilet systems and converting our waste into an energy laden treasure? If it really boils down to the ick factor, then perhaps it's high time that we all grow up and realize that there's no more room for us to hem and haw about what we deem a worthy resource. If it's good enough for cows, then it should be good enough for us.
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