For decades, composting toilets have been an off-the-grid novelty. But in a time of limited fresh water and burgeoning interest in sustainable living, they are ripe for re-examination.
Sonoma County is hardly the only place that composting toilets have been put into use for remote rural residences. But Miriam Volat believes this area may be more receptive than most to the wider use of such fixtures.
While the county’s James Johnson is supportive of the new studies, and sees potential benefits from wider use of composting toilets, he also recognizes that allowing their use more widely in parts of the county could lead to some unintended consequences.
Find out more about the Composting Toilet Research Project now underway at the Occidental Arts & Ecology Center.