"Science does not know its debt to imagination."

I have to admit that when I first read the question, I cringed. Soon after, I laughed and got serious knowing that it’s actually a really good idea. If you think otherwise, here are some pros and cons on using biosolids as agriculture fertilizers:

Pros: All natural, low cost, nutrient and mineral rich, always accessible, a source of irrigation, increases plant growth, fewer chemicals than store-bought fertilizers, re-use/ recycle.

Cons: Risk from pollution, looked down upon as dirty, contain pathogens and bacteria.

As you can tell from my extensive list of pros and not so many cons, I’m all for it. It’s all natural, low cost and it’s always around (if participants maintain a high fibre diet).

Too many chemicals are used in our everyday lives and especially in our food. Even before we drench out vegetables in dressing there were very many chemicals that it had s

As crops are grown and harvested every season they continue to strip vitamins and minerals from the soil that they are grown in. Rotating is one way to replenish the soil with these essential vitamins and minerals. It’s easier for the plant to create their own vitamins but as for minerals, well, that’s where fertilizers come in. It’s much better for the crop and the environment to attain there minerals the natural way, from mineral rich human waste! Why MAKE a solution to give back to mother nature when we can BE one? This is the life cycle! Give back to what allows us to thrive the greenest way possible.

We can learn a lesson from Russell, our favourite Wilderness Explorer from t

I know, I know; it’s weird. It’s embarrassing, it’s GROSS. Well, where do you think our ancestors went to the bathroom? Toilets weren’t invented until 1596. Before that, buckets of human waste were just thrown onto the streets. Which leads me to an extreme con:

This is a quick rundown of the Bubonic Plague, basically, 14th century Europeans weren’t too keen on disposing their waste so they just threw buckets of them out the street during the time of expansion where buildings got higher and higher. Those who weren’t as rich stayed on the ground and even underground to where the waste would drain into. As their living conditions worsened so did their health. This lead to the Bubonic Plague which killed more than 25 million people, a third of the European population at the time.

This is not to say that using human waste as fertilizer will cause that, I’m just giving an example of the worst case scenario; which would be, a plague. We’ve obviously learned a lot since that time and our sanitation has changed dramatically. So much so, that we’ve seemed to have lost touch with nature. Our bodies were naturally made to give back to the environment and I think we should allow it.

We spread around cow, pig, horse, etc. manure everywhere, so why not our own? What’s the difference?

Obviously, we must first treat the humanure the right way. If mixed into a water supply, improperly composted or used raw, it can cause some serious damage (read: Bubonic plague). But if treated properly, it is just as effective as any other manure farmers use.

How it works:

Humans go to the bathroom the same way and flush the same way but instead of the waste going into the sewers, they go into an underground hole along with leaves, grass and kitchen waste. The temperature must be kept at at least 55 degrees Celsius.

After a few weeks you then have a lovely manure that can be used to fertilize your garden.