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Composting Toilets. Clarification Please


Clodi

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As we speak (sorry, write) my boat is in dock for a lot of work.

 

As a result of the work to be done I have to loose my pump-out toilet. I will replace it with a composting one (a Nature's Head).

 

The boat should be ready at the end of January and I will post (as honestly as I can) my experiences. I have a plan for the onward composting of the "output" - luckily I have a lot of space in my front locker -  I'll let you know how I get on.

Edited by frahkn
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8 hours ago, Tumshie said:

Locally to me they aren't given specific bags for the dog poo bins it's the same non compostable refuge bag that go in the park and street bins there is no special provision for it to compost, its treated like any other land fill waste. When the guys empty the bins at the local parks they empty the dog poo bins at the same time and in the same way.

I think all plastic is non compostable, the "biodegradable" ones just break down into smaller bits of plastic.

 

Would be great if I was wrong about this...

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16 hours ago, Tumshie said:

This would be the point that needs cracking - bagging it up and binning it defeats the purpose of composting so there needs to be a way for boaters to have a neat and tidy way to compost while the are on the move. Because it's all very well it working for some one who has a home mooring with a compost bin where they can empty their toilet and let it do its funky thing but that is not where the problem is. So either CRT need to invest in a huge amount of compost bins that people are bound to put non compostables in or boaters need to have some thing on their boat where they can store each three week batch of poo for three to four months which also allows it to compost properly. 

 

ETA - Worm farms maybe?

 

Ps did you know that most tea bags are not compostable, most have a paper coated plastic mesh rather than being just paper. The resemble heavy spiders web if you find them in your compost after a year. 

My composting loo does 3 months between changing bins, just an observation, when I have been on the move I have dug holes and buried it with no ill affects either. Their seems to be a paranoia about all this [not from you] yet as you point out the council acting to their guidlines just bury it, modern landfill sites are lined and covered by a very thick membrane that is waterproof so no doubt over time all the rubbish will heat up and breakdown, so whilst ever  councils let young families throw nappies into landfill the small amount that boaters dispose of is just a drop in the landfill in comparison isnt it?

15 hours ago, mrsmelly said:

you have just given me a great idea ?

Dont tell any body but ive come up with a plan for boat toilets. I will have a system of units I shall call elsan points installed throughout the country that will be plumbed into the mains sewerage system or poo tanks. I will market toilets that look similar to composting toilets but there will be no need to seperate the wet from the poo or line the toilet with bin liners or keep it for months in yer engine room. The tank in the toilet will be easily removeable and taken from the boat to the said elsan point for disposal. I wonder if I will be able to sell any?

But they are so heavy Tim and you have to empty them twice a week! plus they stink to high heavens so they will never catch on ?

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10 hours ago, frahkn said:

As we speak (sorry, write) my boat is in dock for a lot of work.

 

As a result of the work to be done I have to loose my pump-out toilet. I will replace it with a composting one (a Nature's Head).

 

The boat should be ready at the end of January and I will post (as honestly as I can) my experiences. I have a plan for the onward composting of the "output" - luckily I have a lot of space in my front locker -  I'll let you know how I get on.

Dont forget to use ground coconuts in the solids you cam buy it from eurocarparts it does help

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10 hours ago, rasputin said:

I think all plastic is non compostable, the "biodegradable" ones just break down into smaller bits of plastic.

 

Would be great if I was wrong about this...

Unfortunately you're not wrong - supermarket plastic bags and bin/rubbish bags were for a while branded as biodegradable but the weren't, they were just degradable which of course there is a big difference. You're right the new degradable bags just break down quicker but just into smaller and smaller pits of plastic, which is fine if they're already in the land fill but a bit pants if they've blown off to break down in a pond or under a hedge. ?. Even biodegradable and compostable are not the same. But at least there are now more compostable option available that weren't before, baby/facial wipes for example and more companies are using plant based 'plastic' wrapping and packaging, I use plant based compostable nappy sacks to pick up my dog poo and a Swedish company called Naty have a full range of compostable/biodegradable baby care and hygiene products - I don't have children so I can't compare nappy prices but I would presume the compostable ones are more expense however the prices will come down as more people use them. https://www.biggreensmile.com/brands/naty.aspx?brand=Naty&sort=Q

2 hours ago, peterboat said:

My composting loo does 3 months between changing bins,

May I ask what kind of composting toilet you have - did you buy one like the nature's head or did you make your own? :)

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21 hours ago, Chewbacka said:

I would never buy a house close to and at a lower level than a landfill site.  God knows what leaches out into the ground water.  

 

Nothing.

 

I did an Environmental Management course for BT, which involved visiting a landfill site.  As part of planning permission being granted they have to be made impervious to water, have settling ponds to collect and treat any run-off and sophisticated leak detection fitted.

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31 minutes ago, cuthound said:

 

Nothing.

 

I did an Environmental Management course for BT, which involved visiting a landfill site.  As part of planning permission being granted they have to be made impervious to water, have settling ponds to collect and treat any run-off and sophisticated leak detection fitted.

Including sites built 50+ years ago?

 

Back then there was not a lot of separating out the more toxic stuff, and domestic chemicals were more carcinogenic as many are now banned.  But I still wouldn’t trust a waste site operation to not have the odd accident, or forget to report run-off pollution event.

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2 hours ago, cuthound said:

 

Nothing.

 

I did an Environmental Management course for BT, which involved visiting a landfill site.  As part of planning permission being granted they have to be made impervious to water, have settling ponds to collect and treat any run-off and sophisticated leak detection fitted.

You want to come and investigate the one at Pakefield, they don't know whats in it and a few years ago it started leaching out of the cliff face, https://www.edp24.co.uk/news/ticking-toxic-underground-timebomb-fears-1-543221

 

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5 minutes ago, ditchcrawler said:

You want to come and investigate the one at Pakefield, they don't know whats in it and a few years ago it started leaching out of the cliff face, https://www.edp24.co.uk/news/ticking-toxic-underground-timebomb-fears-1-543221

 

 

That report is 8 years old, and finishes withe the following statement from the EA.

 

"Yesterday, The Environment Agency admitted that Cleanaway Ltd owns the Pakefield Landfill site.

“It stopped accepting waste in 1990, but is still subject to a Waste Management Licence which is regulated by the Environment Agency,” a spokesperson said.

“Under the terms of the licence, Cleanaway Ltd have an obligation to monitor the groundwater underlying the site, these analyses are submitted to the Environment Agency on a regular basis. There is no evidence that leachate from the landfill site has discharged onto the beach at Pakefield.

“In addition, all the studies carried out on the site suggest that this is unlikely to happen.

“We will however continue to monitor the situation and have taken extra samples for analysis which we will have the results for early next week.

“We expect these to also be clear but have responded to public concern.”

 

Presumably in the intervening years either the EA have forced Cleanaway to address any problems or nothing has happened and the EA's prediction were correct.

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2 minutes ago, cuthound said:

 

That report is 8 years old, and finishes withe the following statement from the EA.

 

"Yesterday, The Environment Agency admitted that Cleanaway Ltd owns the Pakefield Landfill site.

“It stopped accepting waste in 1990, but is still subject to a Waste Management Licence which is regulated by the Environment Agency,” a spokesperson said.

“Under the terms of the licence, Cleanaway Ltd have an obligation to monitor the groundwater underlying the site, these analyses are submitted to the Environment Agency on a regular basis. There is no evidence that leachate from the landfill site has discharged onto the beach at Pakefield.

“In addition, all the studies carried out on the site suggest that this is unlikely to happen.

“We will however continue to monitor the situation and have taken extra samples for analysis which we will have the results for early next week.

“We expect these to also be clear but have responded to public concern.”

 

Presumably in the intervening years either the EA have forced Cleanaway to address any problems or nothing has happened and the EA's prediction were correct.

Yes they are so confident they are still monitoring it

 

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2 hours ago, cuthound said:

 

Nothing.

 

I did an Environmental Management course for BT, which involved visiting a landfill site.  As part of planning permission being granted they have to be made impervious to water, have settling ponds to collect and treat any run-off and sophisticated leak detection fitted.

When did that regulation come in?   I remember our local tip before the regulation and there must be hundreds (thousands?) of tonnes of waste not treated that way and so capable of slowly leaching into the water table.

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Just now, ditchcrawler said:

Yes they are so confident they are still monitoring it

 

All land fills sites, whether still accepting waste or not are monitored for leachate as part of the licence until the EA deem the site safe to be returned to other uses.

 

https://leachate.co.uk/main/leachate-chemistry-testing/how-leachate-changes/

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2 minutes ago, Jerra said:

When did that regulation come in?   I remember our local tip before the regulation and there must be hundreds (thousands?) of tonnes of waste not treated that way and so capable of slowly leaching into the water table.

 

Don't know,  I did the course circa 2002 and it was long established then.

 

Given the potential toxicity of leachate there must have some prevention measures in place otherwise many areas would be toxic wastelands by now.

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