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livingontheland - Re: [Livingontheland] Using Human Waste

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Subject: Healthy soil and sustainable growing

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Chronological Thread  
  • From: paul@oneseedling.com
  • To: "Healthy soil and sustainable growing" <livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Livingontheland] Using Human Waste
  • Date: Thu, 22 Jul 2010 06:04:21 -0600


>I have used compost from our Humanure toilet for over 20 years and have
always put it on our personal garden, not those used to sell to the
public.
In addition I innovated using the effluent from our methane biodigenster
in a method I call pooponics, using human effluent instead of fish poop
like in aquaponics. I am into the third year of testing in conjunction
with Texas A&M, and thus far there are no problems.
I believe there is a real need for this as it uses water and nutrients
that would normally go to waste. We can't afford to waste either. As far
as using the same methods to utilize human waste from sewer systems the
only drawback is all the pesticides, herbicides, medicines, hormones etc
that go into the public system. I know what goes into mine.
Paul the skeptic.

Several people on the list have mentioned the use of human waste for
> agricultural purposes. I'm interested in what peoples experience has been
> with this and what kinds of precautions people are taking to break the
> pathogen-human cycles in order to avoid disease transmission. The World
> health Organization has done a lot of work on this and their guidelines
> are available online.
> http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/wastewater/gsuww/en/index.html
>
> This appears to me to be one of the crucial linkages that will have to be
> established in a steady state economy. Nutrient recycling is a fundamental
> ecosystem function/service which must be integrated in the closed
> human-earth system. Of course pathogens have evolved to exploit this
> system and we have to assure a reasonable level of safety.
>
> Phil Bunch
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> Livingontheland mailing list
> Livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org
> http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/livingontheland
>


Paul the Skeptic
www.oneseedling.com





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