The Importance Of Poop
It starts with what we replace plant nutrients with in agriculture! Instead of using chemical fertilizers that only effectively replaces the main building blocks of organic matter -- N,P and K -- human and animal fertilizer replaces the whole spectrum of nutrients including the micro-nutrients that give plants taste, good nutrition and resistance to disease. By doing so we would also cut in half the pollution caused by agricultural run-off and the now flushed out nutrients from sewage systems. It may seem to be an impossible change to make but the first step is simple. We can immediately apply a technology for dealing with toilet waste that catches the whole nutrient base from human excretion, without spreading disease from human pathogens.
By switching over to odor-free, hygienic toilet systems that catches the plant nutrients without mixing them up with technical waste, we would get these nutrients back in a directly usable form. This full spectrum fertilizer strengthens the plants and we will not, as now, need to kill everything that we consider a threat to the crop as they get better at defending themselves. The food we produce will taste better, be more nutritious and attract better prices in the markets. Small natural blemishes is then, not a sign of bad agriculture but a sign that these fruits and veggies are organically produced and will be good for us and the environment.
So amazingly, healthy food starts with how we incorporate our and other animals bodily secretions in the cycle of our food production.
Hey!
I really appreciate your thoughts.
Perhaps you can help with a couple items. First, some vegetables need more nitrogen than others, and obtaining organic nitrogen is difficult. Manure does not have enough. For example, nitrogen can help spinach from bolting early.
The other issue is that just because a fertilizer is organic does not mean that it will not run off and pollute water ways. Lots of organic matter helps prevent the run-off along with tilling the manure under the ground. Nevertheless, the best sandy loam soils allow any source of fertilizer to seep through the soil into water ways. We need to always use as much organic matter as we can to prevent as much run-off as we can.
Please keep up the good work!
Bob Spencer
January 7, 2009 10:45 AM | Reply | Permalink
Thank you Bob -- good points. A gradual switch back to fertilizers with a high spectrum nutrient content doesn't mean that we can let go of any other [organic] farming wisdom. Organic matter in the soil is also crucial and making sure that we don't over-fertilize or let run-off pollute streams, lakes,estuaries or groundwater is always going to be a concern. But using human/animal fertilizer means that at least we don't pollute with both our [fertilizer] AND chemical fertilizers as is the case now.
Regarding veggies that need extra nitrogen or anything special, that can always be added as needed ... my point is that we are depleting soils of micronutrients which we need to replenish and animal fertilizer has it -- chemical fertilizer doesn't have it.
January 8, 2009 4:55 AM | Reply | Permalink
So how do we do it? The book's author talks about biogas and composting systems in use in China and India--should we implement those in fully industrialized countries as well? Seems to me that if you live on a farm, you should not have water-flush toilets. Your waste (and that of your animals, perhaps) should be safely composted on-site. It's the American way! Self-sufficient and not reliant on the gub-ment.
January 7, 2009 11:05 AM | Reply | Permalink
There is a simple [yet crucial to understand] method of getting the nutrients back to the soil SAFELY on-site. It is called Long-Term Composting and it isolates the feces, which is the [principal] source of potential pathogens in human "waste". When composting toilet residue on-site, we need not remove those solids for around 40 years when the system is dimensioned correctly. A tank of about half a cubic meter per person is required ... not huge -- see how this is possible at www.compostera.org
This long retention period is also the best way of coping with persistent drug-residues in our feces. The feces is, however, not the main source of the nutrients -- urine is and by letting it slowly seep through a filter-bed in the bottom of the compost reactor, we get a natural disinfection from the nitrite and nitrate formed during the nitrification process. Soaking meat in nitrate was the method used to kill bacteria and parasites in the olden days and it still works well.
This Long-Term composting process has been tested and observed for 5-6 decades and is very consistent but it got run over by flush toilets as the easy way of simply getting "IT" out of the house. Today we see the large scale devastation spreading by this primary system error.
January 8, 2009 5:24 AM | Reply | Permalink
You should read the latest TPM post on this topic, about the sludge scam. She covers a lot of territory on human waste, from "recycling" to toxics to compost toilets. Doesn't seem like spreading the shit around is the snap solution you casually suggest.
Also, please see my response to your comment regarding animal waste at the original post.
January 7, 2009 2:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
Since potassium doesn't form covalent bonds, it can't really be considered a building block. Still, your point stands.
January 7, 2009 3:17 PM | Reply | Permalink
Excretion is what the kidneys do (followed by urination). The technical term for pooping is "ejestion".
January 7, 2009 6:38 PM | Reply | Permalink
Where do you read that I CASUALLY [or even seriously] suggest "spreading shit around" ???
I have done this work since the early 1960ies -- I have no interest in pulling rank on you but it is carefully researched and tested in a number of practical situations all over the world. What is your background on the subject ?
Please be more careful yourself with your statements so we can keep a serious dialogue.
January 8, 2009 5:38 AM | Reply | Permalink
Thanks for the comment -- "ejestion" is not a word to be found in the dictionary -- where did you find that ? Just curious.
January 8, 2009 5:42 AM | Reply | Permalink
I learned it while studying biology. If you google it, you will see it being used, but it hasn't reached common parlance yet.
January 8, 2009 9:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
I misspelled "egestion" -- doh! Sorry about that.
January 8, 2009 9:35 PM | Reply | Permalink