From: Mark Walker (mark@permanentend.org)
Date: Sat Aug 23 2003 - 17:51:58 MDT
Barbara Lamar wrote:
> > Based on calculations from
> > http://www.prismusa.homestead.com/files/Duckweed.htm (see for derivation
> > http://www.permanentend.org/home.html under resources) a 3m2 pond
> > should be
> > sufficiently large to
> > process the waste of a single human.
>
> I have no doubt this, or some variation, would work. I've secretly
> maintained grey water systems in two cities, using various plants for
> purification (I've found that water hyacinths in combination with papyrus
do
> a good job, and the water hyacinths grow extremely rapidly and provide a
> ready supply of mulch for the gardens). None of the neighbors has ever
> suspected. There is not an unpleasant odor unless you pour something toxic
> down the drain and kill off your aerobic bacteria. Even then, the system
> recovers rapidly.
>
> However, I've found that a more efficient and aesthetically pleasing means
> of treating the byproducts of human metabolism (that is to say, shit and
> pee) is to use thermophilic composting. There is no more odor than with a
> conventional toilet; you don't need expensive fancy contraptions; the heat
> kills pathogens, even worm eggs; the process takes up very little space
and
> is over with quickly -- in warm weather you go from excrement and sawdust,
> dead leaves, or other high-carbon waste material to beautiful soil in a
> couple of weeks. I have never used this process in town, but I used it the
> whole time I lived on the farm. My cost to install the system was $15 for
> the wood, lath and cement to make a base for the seat, $3.98 for two
plastic
> buckets, and a few bucks for cinder blocks to enclose the compost pile.
>
I remember Damien relating a while back how he used to get his head stuck
down a dunny (translation: toilet) in grade school. I'm guessing he's glad
it wasn't your type of toilet--but rather than speculating perhaps you
should put this to the test. I've looked at commercial units that sell in
the $500 range based on the same principles as you describe. While I won't
dispute the efficiency of the breakdown, it seems to me to yield a less
useable product. I use the duckweed to feed the carp and cichlids in my
system. Duckweed is amazing--it can double its own weight under ideal
conditions. I realize that you use the night soil to fertilize, but I think
using soil is ultimately less efficient than using hydroponics (actually
aquaponics)--soil is old school man. ; ) Thanks for the feedback.
Mark
Mark Walker, PhD
Research Associate, Philosophy, Trinity College
University of Toronto
Room 214 Gerald Larkin Building
15 Devonshire Place
Toronto
M5S 1H8
www.permanentend.org
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