Lots More Information

Related HowStuffWorks Articles

• How Toilets Work
• What if everybody in the United States flushed the toilet at the same time?
• What's the most expensive toilet in the world?
• How Composting Works
• How Sewer and Septic Systems Work
• How Living Off the Grid Works
• How the ZeroHouse Works
• How Green Building Works
• Why can't we manufacture water?

More Great Links

• Envirolet Composting Toilet World
• U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Water
• LetsGoGreen.com: Practical Alternatives to Sewer and Septic Systems
• Planet Green
• TreeHugger.com  

Sources

• Abazs, David. "Wastewater solutions on a solar and wind powered homestead." Countryside and Small Stock Journal. July/August 2000.
• Battista, Carolyn. "A Natural Solution For Those Times When Nature Calls." New York Times. March 25, 2001. (June 17, 2008)http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C02E1D71F3DF936A15750C0A9679C8B63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=all
• Birdsong, Annie. "Awash in Waste: Alternatives in Sanitation for Saving Our Bodies of Water." Terrain. Winter/Spring 2004.
• "FAQ." SunMar. (June 17, 2008)http://www.sun-mar.com/technology/faq.php
• "How much power does a 120VAC electric model use?" Envirolet. (June 17, 2008)http://www.envirolet.com/howmucpowdoe.html
• Kahn, Lloyd, Blair Allen, Julie Jones and Peter Aschwanden. "The Septic System Owner's Manual." Shelter Publications. 2007.
• Kwok, Alison and Walter Grondzik. "The Green Studio Handbook: Environmental Strategies for Schematic Design." Architectural Press. 2006.
• Lang, Joel. "New Esteem for the Throne: Public 'Just Loves' Composting Toilets." The Hartford Courant. June 3, 2007.
• Narain, Sunita. "The Flush Toilet is Ecologically Mindless." Down to Earth. Feb. 28, 2002.
• Nash, Jenny. "The Lowdown on Low-Flow Toilets." HGTV Bath Design. (June 17, 2008)http://design.hgtv.com/Bath/Article_detail.aspx?id=528
• Rosenbaum, Marc. "Converting "Waste" into Nutrients -- Treating Household Organic Waste." South Mountain Company and Island Cohousing. June 6, 1998.http://www.buildinggreen.com/features/mr/waste.cfm
• "Self-contained Composting Toilets." LetsGoGreen.com. (June 17, 2008)http://www.letsgogreen.com/composting-toilet-desc.html
• Steinfeld, Carol and Claire Anderson. "Water-Wise Toilets." Mother Earth News. June/July 2002. (June 17, 2008)http://www.motherearthnews.com/Nature-Community/2002-06-01/Water-Wise-Toilets.aspx
• "Water Efficiency Technology Fact Sheet: Composting Toilets." Environmental Protection Agency Office of Water. September 1999. (June 17, 2008)http://www.epa.gov/owmitnet/mtb/comp.pdf