Collecting urine, that magical yellow liquid we excrete from our
bodies several times a day, is a key step in recycling human nutrients.
Urine contains most of the nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium we
release. These nutrients are the major components of chemical
fertilizers, and urine is an amazing plant fertilizer! It is typically
sterile, and, if separated from feces, can be easily and safely reused.
Urine collection can be as simple as peeing in a jar or installing a
urinal or urine-diverting dry or composting toilet.
The urine your own household produces is safe to use without treatment. To collect urine in your house all you need is a two-to-five gallon jug or bucket. It must be fitted with a tight cover to prevent oxygen from turning the urine's nitrogen into ammonia, which smells bad and causes some nitrogen loss. Though urine is usually sterile, it can become contaminated if it comes into contact with feces. There are also a few diseases that can be transmitted through urine: leptospirosis and schistosomiasis (bilharzia), which are found almost exclusively in tropical aquatic environments; and typhoid, which is inactivated shortly after excretion. If urine has been contaminated with feces, or if it came from strangers who may carry these diseases, urine should be purified before it is used.
Urine is easy to purify -- all you have to do is wait. Urine leaves the body fairly acidic and then the pH increases rapidly until pathogens are unable to survive. This process takes from fifteen days in warmer Mexico to over three months in the chilly Scandinavian winter.
The urine your own household produces is safe to use without treatment. To collect urine in your house all you need is a two-to-five gallon jug or bucket. It must be fitted with a tight cover to prevent oxygen from turning the urine's nitrogen into ammonia, which smells bad and causes some nitrogen loss. Though urine is usually sterile, it can become contaminated if it comes into contact with feces. There are also a few diseases that can be transmitted through urine: leptospirosis and schistosomiasis (bilharzia), which are found almost exclusively in tropical aquatic environments; and typhoid, which is inactivated shortly after excretion. If urine has been contaminated with feces, or if it came from strangers who may carry these diseases, urine should be purified before it is used.
Urine is easy to purify -- all you have to do is wait. Urine leaves the body fairly acidic and then the pH increases rapidly until pathogens are unable to survive. This process takes from fifteen days in warmer Mexico to over three months in the chilly Scandinavian winter.
How to use urine:
- Dilute it--one part urine to three to six parts water--and pour it into the soil around your plants. Don't use on young seedlings, and water alternately with rainwater or city water to flush salts from the soil, or apply urine before a rain.
- Compost it! Pour urine (rich in nitrogen) onto sawdust, leaves, or other carbon-rich materials and let it rot.
- Add it to your greywater system or constructed wetland.
- Divert it to a leach pit, ensure it's away from natural waterways or drinking water wells.
0 comments:
Post a Comment