2023-08-09 13:08:00
“We see a clear difference in a few years. In the late 90s when we started to promote dry toilets, it was volunteers who took care of assembling the kits. Quickly, they were no longer able to keep up with the demand and others took up the torch”, testifies an official of the association.
But what is it exactly? Dry toilets are nothing more than conventional toilets, with the difference that they are not connected to a water supply. On the other hand, they work with shavings or sawdust which must be evacuated regularly and whose mission is to absorb urine and excrement. These can then be placed in a compost before being used as a natural fertilizer.
“The great technical advantage of the dry toilet is that there is no need for a large diameter waste pipe and a water supply as required by water toilets.”, underlines the Friends of the Earth association.
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According to the inventor of the dry toilet, Joseph Orzágh, opting for this type of installation represents the strongest ecological act that a person can take. “Since the arrival of the flush toilet, there is no longer any need to worry regarding our waste, just flush the toilet and that’s it, it’s forgotten! This gesture has become commonplace and it seems without consequences. And yet, the use of the WC leads to an enormous loss of organic matter which does not return to the soil, but will be lost in the waterways which it pollutes. And this significant consumption of drinking water for the WC is increasingly reflected in our portfolio”, explains the association in its practical guide to dry toilets, available free of charge on its website.
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Another advantage mentioned by supporters of these toilets: they are silent and contrary to what one might imagine, they do not smell bad. “Wood chips block excrement odors in the bucket, absorb urine and make good compost for a really reasonable purchase price,” says the association
On the other hand, these ecological toilets are not very compatible with living in an apartment. “We might imagine a collection system, like for the orange bags, but as this is not yet the case, it is better to have your own compost.”
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