Compost Toilet System
Condensed Instruction Manual
Copyright 2019, Joseph C. Jenkins. All rights reserved. This Manual may be copied and distributed freely under the following three conditions: 1) the information is not changed; 2) the use is not for profit; and 3) the source of the information is credited: “Joseph Jenkins, Inc., 143 Forest lane, Grove City,
PA 16127 USA; HumanureHandbook.com.” You can download this manual and translate it into any language without any additional needed permission.

What is “humanure”?
Humanure (human manure) is human fecal material and urine recycled for agricultural purposes via
thermophilic composting. Humanure contains valuable soil nutrients that enhance plant growth. For
these reasons, humanure should be recycled whenever possible. When recycled by composting, pollution and health threats associated with human excrement can be eliminated.
How can humanure be recycled?
Humanure can be recycled in two basic ways. First, it can be applied raw to agricultural land. In thiscase, humanure may be called “night soil.” Unfortunately, raw applications of human excrement to soil
can create pollution and spread disease, so this method of recycling is strongly discouraged and is infact illegal in the USA. The second method of recycling humanure is through a process called “composting.” This is the process used by the compost toilet systems described in this manual.
What is composting?
Composting is the managed, aerobic decomposition of organic material in such a manner that it develops internal biological heat. It is the feeding of humanure, food scraps, and other organic materials
to invisible organisms such as beneficial bacteria. Many compost organisms are too small to be seen,
however, many of them can be seen. The larger ones include earthworms and many other tiny insects. Fungi also live in compost piles and they digest the tougher, woody plant materials.
What are organic materials?
Organic materials are those materials that came from recently living things such as plants and animals. Common organic materials include "toilet material" (feces, urine, toilet paper), animal manures,
sawdust, food scraps, weeds, leaves, grasses, wool, hay, straw, agricultural byproducts such as
wheat chaff or residues from beer making, vodka making, cider presses, wine presses, distilleries,
and many other sources. A compostable organic material that is not from a recently living thing wouldbe, for example, peat moss.
How does one feed these materials to compost organisms?
Organic materials are fed to compost organisms by creating a compost pile. A compost pile allows us
to combine various organic materials above ground, thereby providing oxygen to the aerobic microorganisms inside the pile. It also allows us to keep the materials quarantined inside a bin away frompeople, dogs, goats, chickens, and other creatures that should not be disturbing the compost.
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1Compost microorganisms will digest and convert humanure into a safe and pleasant soil-like material
when the humanure is combined with other carbon rich organic materials such as grass, leaves, sawdust, hay, sugar cane bagasse, rice hulls, straw, and other animal manures. Compost organisms do
not like raw humanure because it is too wet and too high in nitrogen. But when combined with driermaterials that are higher in carbon, the compost organisms love to eat humanure.
Compost Toilets
A compost toilet is a collection device used to recycle organic materials. It is not a waste disposal device used to dispose of sewage, as is a flush toilet. A Loveable Loo type compost toilet may be theonly toilet that does not collect waste. The purpose of a compost toilet is to collect human fecal material and urine so that the collected toilet material can be recycled. When something is recycled, it is
not wasted and should not be referred to as “waste” (which is why we call it “humanure” as opposed
to "human waste"). Also collected in the toilet are toilet paper as well as paper tubes from the centerof the toilet paper rolls. All urine is collected in the compost toilet. Also collected in a compost toilet
are vomit (when sick), and baby diaper fecal material (scraped off the cloth diaper into the toilet).
You should collect food scraps in a separate compost container and deposit them directly into thesame outdoor compost bin. It is important to understand that the humanure compost should not be
segregated from your food compost. Everything should be composted in the same pile! The mix ofmaterials improves the health of the compost pile.
If you collect food scraps in the compost toilet, you risk a fruit fly infestation. However, once the toilet
receptacle has been removed from the toilet and set aside with a lid on it, you can put food scraps in
it if you are going to empty it within a few days. There is still room for about 1 gallon of food scraps ina full compost toilet receptacle. Keep in mind that a 5-gallon toilet receptacle filled to the brim may be
too heavy for many people to handle (i.e., about 40 pounds or 18 kg).
The compost toilet should be located in a private, comfortable setting, indoors year-round or outdoors
in warmer climates, if desired. When properly used, the compost toilet will create no unpleasantodors. Therefore many people choose to place their toilet indoors, in or near their bedrooms, offices,or in a basement, garage, shop, tent, (when camping), or wherever it is most convenient, private, andcomfortable. Keep in mind that the toilets are best located where the receptacles can be easily removed to an outdoor compost bin.
How can a compost toilet not create bad odors?
When any foul-smelling material is deposited into a compost toilet, it must be covered with a clean organic material to prevent odor, absorb moisture, and prepare the material for composting. This is how
humanure is mixed with the other organic materials — by covering. No manual mixing, stirring, chopping or digging of the humanure or the compost is required, only covering. Therefore, the clean organic materials used in the toilet are called “cover materials.” The cover materials used in the toilet
should have a somewhat moist (not wet or dry) and fine consistency. Sawdust from logs that aresawn into boards is ideal, but other materials can be used depending on what is locally available.
Some people utilize rice hulls, coco coir, sugarcane bagasse, peat moss, rotted leaves, even shredded junk mail. Proper cover materials are absolutely essential to the successful operation of a compost toilet.
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Can wood ashes be used as a cover material?
NO. Wood ashes or coal ashes should NOT be used as cover materials in compost toilets, nor should
they be used for making compost. Compost organisms do not thrive on such materials. Clean woodashes (wood ashes without plastic or other garbage) are good for the soil. They should be applied directly to the soil or saved in an outdoor pile or in a fire-proof container for later garden use, but notadded to a compost pile. Microorganisms don't eat ashes. In fact ashes can raise the pH of the organic mass and thereby hinder the reproduction of the microorganisms. The object is to encourage
microbial growth, not to discourage it.
How long does it take to fill a 5-gallon (20 liter) container?
A 20-liter toilet receptacle will collect about one week’s worth of human fecal material and urine, including cover material, produced by one average adult. The bigger you are and the more you eat, thefaster the toilet receptacle will fill. If you’re using an undesirable cover material in your toilet such as
wood shavings, which are light and airy and will allow some odor to escape, your toilet will fill up
faster because you have to use more cover material than is normally used. Human excrement ismostly liquid. The liquid will fill in the spaces between the cover material as the toilet container fills up.
In fact, you can use the compost toilet as a urinal and only collect urine in it. When using a compost
toilet, a clean layer of cover material should be kept over the toilet contents at all times! The simple
rule to follow is this: if the toilet contents have an odor, add more cover material until there is no odor.
How is the humanure composted?
The collected toilet material is taken to a compost bin and added to the bin’s contents. If a single adult
were using a compost toilet with a proper cover material, he or she would have to empty approximately one 20-liter toilet receptacle per week. For an average family of four, four toilet receptacles
would have to be emptied per week, which can be done all at once and should take about 20 minutes. For every 20-liter container of toilet material taken to a compost pile, a roughly equal containerof organic cover material will be necessary to bring back into the toilet room. The task of household
humanure composting should be conducted by a willing and dedicated person who is experienced,
reliable and responsible.
The rule is to add smelly organic material INTO the compost pile, not ONTO the pile. You should always pull the cover material layer aside from the top of your compost pile, open up the compost underneath (use a manure fork, shovel, or similar tool), add fresh organic material into the depression,pull the compost over the fresh material, pull the cover layer back over everything, then add morecover material as needed.
Is one toilet receptacle enough?
No. For best results, a compost toilet should be equipped with several receptacles, all of which havelids and all of which are exactly the same size and shape. When one receptacle is filled, it is removed
from the toilet, covered with a lid, and set aside in a non-freezing location (it’s impossible to empty
frozen containers, plus they can split and leak if frozen). A clean, empty receptacle is then put inside
the toilet to replace the one that has been removed. Once the second receptacle is filled, it is also removed, covered and set aside, etc. You can do this with any number of receptacles. The full receptacles can be immediately taken to a compost area or just set aside somewhere for composting later.
They do not take up much room. It is important that the toilet is ready and available for use at all
times. You do not want all of your toilet receptacles to be full when someone has to use the toilet.

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Won’t the toilet containers smell bad after they are emptied?
The toilet containers may smell bad. That is why they should be cleaned when they are emptied byusing a long handled toilet brush, a little dish soap and water, or a hose or other form of water
sprayer. It takes approximately 2 liters of water and a minute or two to clean one 20-liter toilet container. All water used to clean the toilet receptacles should be deposited into the compost pile. After
emptying and cleaning toilet containers, the compost-maker should wash her or his hands.
Alternatively, you can put compostable plastic bag liners in your compost toilet. When full, dump theliner and all into your compost pile. You do not have to break or puncture the bags. They will fall aparton their own when added to a pile.
Why put humanure in a compost pile?
Humanure can constitute a threat to public health because it can contain disease organisms. Therefore, it must be kept isolated until it completes the composting process. It is unsanitary and illegal inmost places in the USA to defecate into holes in the ground. Same for applying human excrement
raw to soil. There are three basic rules of human sanitation: 1) human excrement should not comeinto contact with water; 2) human excrement should not come into contact with soil; and 3) you shouldwash your hands after using a toilet or after adding toilet materials to a compost bin.
The purpose of the bin is to isolate and quarantine the humanure so that it does not come into contact
with soil or water, nor can it be accessed by children or animals. Also, the bin elevates the humanure
into an above-ground pile, which helps the compost organisms to have access to the oxygen they
thrive on.
Why won’t the humanure come into contact with soil when it is put into the compost bin?
A humanure compost bin should be built on a soil base. This allows soil organisms to enter the compost from underneath. Such organisms can include earthworms and many other small creatures andinsects, all of which are good for the compost pile. When building a new bin, shape the floor on thebottom of the bin like a shallow bowl. Dig dirt out of the center and throw it around the edges. Before
a compost pile is started, the bottom of the bin is filled with organic material to create a thick layer between the humanure and the soil. This 18” (.5 meter) layer will absorb liquids draining from the initialhumanure deposits. This is called a “biological sponge.” It can be made of loose grass, leaves,weeds, hay, straw, animal manures, and so on, or a blend of such ingredients. Once the humanure
begins to compost (this is indicated by internal heating of the compost pile and may take a few hours,
days or weeks, depending on a lot of variables), the compost pile will then begin to absorb moistureand may even require watering in dry climates. Graywater can be used to keep the compost pile
damp. The compost should always have the moisture of a wrung-out sponge, and can even be wet,which is why all urine is added to a compost pile. If it is too dry, the microorganisms lack motility, cannot thrive, and the organic material will not compost.
If the compost seems too wet, work in more cover material when adding wet organic material to thepile. As long as the pile is above ground and not under water, you don’t have to worry about whether
there is oxygen in the pile. There will be. Theoretically, the motility of compost organisms require a liquid medium. You could say they swim rather than walk. Therefore, a damp pile is essential, as the microorganisms will proliferate in the “biofilms” that coat the organic materials.

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4Why would it take weeks before the compost begins to work?
The compost pile requires a certain amount of mass before it will start to compost and a certain
amount of time for the compost organisms to multiply. Also, the compost can't be too dry or too cold. If
you start a new compost pile in Alaska in the winter, it may freeze and not start working until it thaws
in the spring. Also, composting does not occur in the toilet receptacles, only in the compost bins, due
to lack of mass. The amount of biological activity in the compost pile can be determined by monitoring
the temperature of the compost using a compost thermometer. Some of the compost organisms generate heat during the composting process, especially in the initial stages. Some compost piles will beso hot you cannot put your hand inside the pile. The heat, however, is internal. Compost piles do notradiate heat and cannot effectively be used as a radiant heat source.
Will the compost bin smell bad?
When any toilet material is deposited into a compost bin, it must be covered to prevent odor. The
same rule for cover material usage at the toilet is used at the compost bin: if it smells bad, cover it
until there is no odor. The bin cover materials can include weeds, leaves, grasses, hay, straw, evenscrap woolen or cotton materials, but should never include tree branches or thick, woody materials,
including wood chips (compost organisms are not termites). Keep a cushion of cover material aroundthe sides of the bin to prevent toilet materials from slipping out. The organic materials should be deposited into the center of the bin in a depression, then covered over with the cover material. A toolsuch as a shovel, rake, or hay fork should be kept at the compost bin for making the compost and it
should not be used for any other purpose anywhere else.
When adding material to a compost bin, first rake open the cover material. Pull it to the sides to expose the compost underneath. Then, dig a hole into the center of the exposed compost by pulling theexisting compost in all directions toward the edges of the bin using a rake, fork, shovel or compost
tool. Dump your new organic materials into the hole. Rake the existing compost back over the newmaterial, then rake the cover material back over the compost. Add enough new cover material to keepa clean layer on top of the compost at all times. By following these directions, no food materials will
be exposed to attract vermin such as dogs or raccoons; nothing will smell; nothing will attract flies,
and the humanure will be deposited directly into the active part of the pile where it belongs.
What about rain water? If humanure should not contact water, should we keep out the rain?
Rain water is good for compost because it helps keep the compost moist. Once the compost starts
working, it can absorb a lot of moisture. In areas where rain is excessive such as monsoon areas, it
may be advisable to cover the compost during heavy rains. If the compost is subjected to excessive
rain, it can leach liquids from the bottom of the pile. This is unlikely to occur under normal circumstances. However, in severe rain conditions a simple water-proof cover over the compost, such as atarp, will prevent leaching. In dry climates the compost may need to be watered. Graywater can beused for this purpose. A heavy cover material layer (such as hay or straw) on top of the compost pile
will absorb rain and prevent leaching. It will also prevent the compost from drying out in arid climates.
What about freezing?
If the compost pile gets too cold, it can stop working and go dormant. In very cold climates, it may
freeze solid. How hot a compost pile gets and how long it stays hot is often a matter of how big it isand how much cover material is being used. The bigger piles get hotter and stay hotter longer. Morecover material provides more insulation. Backyard compost piles tend to be approximately one cubic
meter in size, more or less. They can freeze at this size during very cold weather, especially when not
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5covered adequately and/or not fed regularly with fresh organic material. When the compost pile isfrozen, it can still be added to. The material added to a frozen pile should be spread out to keep the
pile somewhat flat in order to prevent a frozen mountain from developing in the center of the pile. It isbest to keep cover materials dry in the winter months so they don’t freeze. A bale or two of straw or
hay, per family of four, per month, should provide sufficient cover material for use on the compost pileduring the winter. A frozen compost pile will revive after it thaws out.
In addition, the cover materials used in the toilet itself should be kept from freezing. If sawdust is used
as a cover material in the toilet, for example, a container of sawdust should be kept indoors and unfrozen at all times during the winter. A “wheelie bin” plastic garbage can is perfect for storing sawdust
inside during the winter months, so long as it is stored where it won’t freeze. A family of four can expect to use two wheelie bins per winter in northwestern Pennsylvania where it snows from November
until April.
What else should be put into the compost pile besides toilet material?
All food scraps should also go into the compost bin. These can include meats, bones, fats, oils, vegetable peels, liquids such as spoiled milk or stale beer, tea bags, egg shells, hair, and anything elsethat is organic and produced by the household during food production and consumption. So can cotton sanitary napkins (although you will have to pick out pieces of plastic from the compost when it isfinished). Small animal mortalities such as dead chickens, cats, raccoons, possums, dogs, ducks, orother creatures can be buried in a compost pile as well. Other animal manures, such as chicken manure, sheep manure, horse manure, goat manure, etc., can also be added to a compost pile. If you
have large amounts of animal manures, such as from a herd of animals, much of the animal manure
can be composted separately so your household humanure compost bin does not fill too quickly. It
may be necessary to keep a wire cover on top of the compost pile to prevent dogs and other animals
from climbing on top of the pile and disturbing the compost, although a thick cover material layer on
top may deter most vermin.
When should a compost pile be started?
The best time to start a compost pile is in the mid-summer when the days are the longest and there is
ample vegetation for creating a biological sponge and for cover material. The compost will start working more quickly during this time of year. Compost prefers fresh, green vegetable matter, so fresh
leaves, weeds, grasses and sawdust are ideal for a compost pile. Later in the year, if the pile goes
dormant and even freezes, there will be an adequate population of compost organisms already in thepile that will enable the pile to start working again in the spring. On the other hand, anytime a compost bin fills up and has no more capacity for additional organic material, a new bin can be started,even in the winter months.
How long does it take to fill a bin?
A standard humanure compost bin used by a family of four is about a cubic meter up to 1.5 meterssquare by 1.5 meters high. A bin of this size can hold the entire amount of organic material collectedby the family over a year, including humanure, cover materials, food scraps, garden debris, and yardmaterials. The reason a small bin of this size can hold so much material is because the organic material shrinks while it is composting. The compost organisms are converting the organic materials into a
dense humus — a process that involves constant shrinking of the organic materials that are added tothe pile. When composting for larger groups, larger bins will be needed, or a number of bins may be
used. In cold weather if the compost is dormant or frozen, it will undergo no shrinkage and will fill
more quickly. However, once it starts working again in the spring, it will again shrink. One misconcepHumanure Composting Condensed Instruction Manual — HumanureHandbook.com

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tion that many people have is that the bin looks full and they think they need a new bin when they
don’t. If the pile is active, it will be shrinking between additions of organic material. So it may look full,
but you can still add a lot to it because it keeps shrinking.
Is it true that a compost pile should be turned periodically?
No, you do not need to disturb the compost pile other than to move the cover material from the top
center of the pile and dig a small depression there when adding new material. Let the compost organisms do the rest of the work for you. Sufficient oxygen will be entrapped in the pile as you add compost materials. Digging,chopping and turning the pile is totally unnecessary and will disturb thecompost organisms that have established their own layered populations. Just build the pile, patiently
allow it to age, and then use the compost. It is a mistake to try to hurry the composting process. Composting requires patience. Composting is like an art. The practice of composting can be improved
through experience and observation. There is much misinformation being circulated about backyard
composting, often, ironically, by compost educators. To learn more about “compost myths,” read the
Humanure Handbook. and The Compost Toilet Handbook.
The humanure composting methods outlined in this instruction manual involve “contained” composting. The compost is never left in an exposed pile. The compost is always collected only in bins and always kept covered. When someone piles organic material in an open pile, as was often done backwhen composting practices were first being developed (and is still done today in many places), thepile will stink, it will attract flies and it will need to be repeatedly turned. Open piles are usually notcovered because the surface area is too large and it would take too much cover material. Also, open
piles have large surface to volume ratios (there is too much surface relative to volume). This means
the internal heat of the pile is unavailable to a large amount of the organic material on the outer surfaces. These piles must be repeatedly “turned” so that the outside is turned inward, allowing all partsof the pile to be subjected to the internal temperatures. Turning is a very labor intensive process andtotally unnecessary when containing the organic material in a covered bin. The notion that compost
piles must be turned refers to the open piles, which is not what we’re doing or recommending.
When is the compost ready to be used?
After the compost bin has been completely filled, it must be covered with a generous layer of clean
cover material and left to rest, undisturbed, for approximately one year. This is the aging or curing
stage of the compost and it is a very important stage. The amount of time the compost is allowed toage, undisturbed, is called the “retention time.” During this time, nothing whatsoever should be added
to the compost bin. During the retention time, the final decomposition of the organic material is taking
place. This is often dominated by fungal organisms as well as larger organisms such as earthworms.
The compost environment is an alien environment for human disease organisms and such
“pathogens” are killed during the composting process. The retention time allows for an additionalsafety period. The compost will continue to shrink while curing.
Immature compost is “phytotoxic” or toxic to plants. It will kill plants. You do not want your compost to
be immature. You may hear people saying how fast they can make compost — some say only a few
weeks. Stay away from these people as they don’t know what they’re talking about. Let your compost
fully mature. Allowing it to cure for approximately one year (more or less) after the bin is filled is agood practice. Plants will start growing on your compost pile when it’s fully mature. You can pull asample of your compost out, put it in a jar and sprout a seed in it to test the maturity. Pumpkin or cucumber seeds work well for this purpose. Otherwise, after a year or so of aging, the compost will beready. In hot climates, the curing or retention time may be reduced to nine months. Use your compost
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7thermometer and make sure the compost temperature has dropped to ambient (outside) air temperature before using it for agricultural purposes.
How should the finished compost be used?
The finished compost, after the retention time is complete, should look and smell like rich, dark, moist
garden soil. It can be used to grow garden plants, trees, vines, shrubs, houseplants, and flowers. It
can be used on top of the soil as a mulch, or dug into the soil for better root access for the plants. It
can also be buried in holes where trees and shrubs are to be planted. Once the first batch of compost
has been completed (which will require approximately a two year period — a year of collecting and ayear of aging), a gardening household of four people can produce approximately one cubic meter ofcompost annually. In the interests of public health, all compost produced on a family plot should be
used only on that plot. When compost is made and then transported off the property, or sold, the compost operation can be considered commercial, can be regulated, and can be subject to a host of
statutary restrictions. This can be avoided by making and using your own compost.
How do we know the compost is safe to use?
Finished compost should never be “sterile,” but it should be sanitary. That means the compost shouldbe teeming with beneficial microorganisms that do not pose a threat to human health. Any human disease organisms that may have been in the original organic material should have been eliminated,
weakened, or greatly diminished by the time the compost has become mature. Finished compost canbe tested in labs for both the existence of pathogens as well as for agricultural quality. If a composter
doubts the safety of the finished compost, the compost can be used for ornamental plants and flowers, for trees and bushes, or for food crops where the compost will not come into contact with thefood and where the handling of the compost will be minimized.
An alternative is to simply allow an additional year of retention time for the compost. Allowing additional retention time requires no energy and only a small amount of space. The additional retention
time may contribute to the safety of the finished compost when the compost quality is in question(such as when the toilet material has been collected from a population that suffers from confirmed
diseases). Therefore, if the compost does not seem “finished” after a year of collection and a year of
retention, allow it to age another year.
On the other hand, rather than let the mature compost sit another year, shovel it into holes in the
ground and plant something on it. Wear gloves and wash your hands afterward.
A healthy household that composts its own toilet material does not need to be overly concerned about
the safety of the finished compost if the instructions in this manual are followed. On the contrary, bycomposting humanure rather than disposing of it into the environment, long-term public health andsafety can be improved, the environment can be protected, and the finished compost can provide soil
fertility.
Acquiring the Cover Materials
Without proper cover materials in adequate quantities, a compost toilet will not work. An individual
family can usually find cover materials by locating local sawmills or sawdust sources, purchasing peatmoss in compressed bags, buying hay or straw from a farm or farm supply store, scavenging materials from the local environment such as leaves, grasses and weeds, or getting leaves from the local
municipality after they’ve been raked up in the fall. Some municipalities sweep up leaves then dump
them into piles where they’re left to rot. Rotted leaves are ideal for compost toilets. Contact your muHumanure Composting Condensed Instruction Manual — HumanureHandbook.com

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nicipality to see if such a source of organic material is available to you. Avoid wood chips or woodshavings as these do not compost well.
Cover materials should not be wet. They should have a basic carbon content from stems and leaves
and other plant cellulose byproducts. Again, the simple rule when using cover material is if the compost smells, it needs more cover material. Cover until there is no odor.
How To Build a Compost Bin
A simple compost bin is four pallets set on edge and tied together in a square. More permanent bins
involve posts and boards. If the top of the compost is accessible to chickens, dogs, horses, etc., it canbe covered with wire mesh to prevent the compost from being disturbed. A square piece of loose wire
fence is easily removed when adding compost to the pile. The compost bin itself can be built from pallets, scrap wood, wire mesh, stacked bales of hay or straw, other recycled materials, or even masonrymaterials such as block, brick or stone. Do not use lumber that is treated with toxic chemicals.
A compost toilet system can be used in the same location for generations. Serious composters will
construct a permanent bin. A minimum three bin system is recommended. One bin is filled for a year
and then left to age. Another bin is filled for a year while the first bin ages. The first bin is graduallyemptied as the second bin nears filling. By the time the second bin is full, the first bin is empty and thecycle starts again. The central bin is used to store cover material, which must be kept dry so it won’t
freeze in the winter. A roof over the third bin can be used for rain water collection, with the water being
conveniently used for cleaning compost toilet receptacles. A water collection system must be drained
during freezing weather.
Compost Toilet Collection for Centralized CompostingAn alternative to individual “backyard” humanure composting is centralized composting at a compost
facility operated by a government agency, a private enterprise, an agricultural collective, a farm, oreven by a friend or neighbor. In such as scenario, the compost toilet receptacles, full and covered
with lids, are collected from homes, toilet stalls, and even apartments, perhaps daily or weekly, andare taken to a composting site.
Such systems have been employed throughout the USA at various venues such as music festivals
and other gatherings where humanure is collected on a daily basis and composted on-site along withfood scraps and other organic material. The toilet users are not the composters. The collection andcomposting is done by a trained crew. Video footage of such systems can be seen at HumanureHandbook.com.
Compost Monitoring by Government Agencies
When humanure compost toilet systems are employed on a large scale in villages, it may be advisable for the local health department, the local agricultural department and even local universities toprovide assistance. This can be done by monitoring the compost-making process to determine bestpractices (which cover materials work best, how much gray water is required to water the compost, if
any, etc.), to analyze finished compost samples for the existence of pathogens, and to conduct analyses of the finished compost to determine its agricultural value.
Compost Toilet Training Programs
When compost toilet systems are being employed by individuals on a large scale in a village setting, it
may be advisable that the individuals undertake a training program prior to starting their composting
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9systems. This training program should include being required to read and understand a manual suchas this one, being required to watch an instructional video showing a successful existing compost toilet system in operation, and attending a toilet building workshop, a compost bin building workshop, ora compost usage workshop. These training programs could be conducted by local NGOs, local government agencies, or by local private enterprises.
Opportunity for Cottage Industries
When valuable materials are discarded as waste, they create a drain on the revenues of society.
When valuable materials are recycled, they allow us to reclaim wealth. The recycling of humanure ona large scale can create small businesses. These could include toilet making businesses, compost
bin construction and erection businesses, and compost-making businesses. The finished compost
can enhance local agricultural production. The finished compost can also be a valuable commodity.
Therefore, compost toilet systems can provide an opportunity for the creation of new, small businesses.
For more information, see The Humanure Handbook 4th edition, by Joseph Jenkins or visit HumanureHandbook.com.
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Humanure Composting Condensed Instruction Manual — HumanureHandbook.com

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Humanure Composting Condensed Instruction Manual — HumanureHandbook.com

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