It is full of incredible facts about how humanure is treated all over the world in history and now, and how most methods result in waste and pollution.  That is, except one: composting.  Even though composting is an extremely common term these days, the science and official definition of it is relatively new.  Jenkins teaches you about history, current compost science and system designs, the magnitude of waste and pollution, the power of compost, and the vast and incomprehensible number of bacteria, fungi, viruses, protozoa, and other forms of life that can literally help to save our existence on this planet. 

You’re first feeling at the words humanure or compost toilet may be disgust.  But once you read this book, you will hopefully realize your disdain should actually be pointed at the immense pollution of our drinking water, land, and food from other sources and the wasteful efforts to treat this pollution.  Your disgust should be pointed at the repulsive, disease-ridden history people have of pooping in drinking water. 

Here are some of my favorite mind-blowing excerpts from the book (Joseph Jenkins, Inc., josephjenkins.com, HumanureHandbook.com)

“Furthermore, if you scraped up all the microorganisms in and on your body, single-celled organisms that are not you, the resulting mass would weigh as much as your brain.” (p. 9)

Since we probably wouldn’t survive without all these microorganisms in our guts and on our skin and wherever else they are, it makes you really think about how we just wouldn’t be us without them!

“When they (thermophilic bacteria) don’t have conditions favorable for growth (i.e., high temperatures), they form ‘endospores’, a life-cycle condition that allows for their long-term survival – very long term.  One scientist estimated that thermophilic endospores can survive for a staggering 1.9 billion years at a temperature 109°F (43°C), and longer if the temperatures are lower.” (p. 28-29)

I just think that’s amazing!  No matter what continent you’re on, the same bacteria that have been around since the beginning of life on this planet, are waiting to make a home in someone’s compost pile.

“In one research study, when compost piles were laced with insecticides and herbicides, the insecticide (carbofuran) was completely degraded, and the herbicide (triazine) was 98.6 percent degraded after fifty days of composting.  In another, when soil contaminated with diesel fuel and gasoline was composted for seventy days, the total petroleum hydrocarbons were reduced approximately 93 percent.” (p. 103)

This book has given me a lot of hope about our ability to heal the damage we have done to our waters and soils.  Pesticides, herbicides, antibiotics, PCBs, Freon, certain antibiotics, pathogenic bacteria, viruses, protozoa, and worms, are all examples of things that compost can break down either completely or to minimal levels.  Jenkins even mentions on page 104 research about a particular strain of bacteria that digests uranium and excretes an insoluble form that can more easily be cleaned up!

As quickly as we have polluted our environment, composting gives us the ability to quickly restore it in many regards.  As the science of composting grows, we will better understand what other things compost can aid in breaking down.  We will learn more of the benefits of composting, as well as its limitations.  But if microorganisms can fix many of the problems, that leaves fewer pollution problems for people to solve through other means.

AND we can grow healthier, more nutrient dense food using compost, with greater resistance to pests and disease-causing pathogens!  All while saving water!

“One lady on another blog during California’s severe drought in 2017 wrote that her water well had dried up, as had all her neighbors’.  Only one farm still had an operating well, and she had to drive over there to bring back the precious water in jugs.  She had to shit in something, so she poured the water into her toilet.” (p. 159)

After reading this book, I have realized how many misconceptions I had about humanure because of what western society considers normal (pooping in our drinking water) or what it considers gross (recycling poop in a safe and effective manner).  Even my own understanding of compost was incomplete, surficial, and full of inaccuracies or myths.  I will soon be updating my permaculture beginner’s guide to reflect my newfound knowledge, and work harder to share factual, up to date information on the science of composting.  So, stay tuned!

Composting is something that everyone should be doing.  Even kitchen and food “waste” needs to be considered a valuable resource by society as a whole.  It’s only a waste now because of how we dispose of it into landfills or with incineration.  Food scraps are not a waste once you learn how to recycle them through composting.  Any organic material can and should be composted!

I could quote the entire book, because almost every sentence had me horrified or amazed.  But I’ll let you read it for yourself. Jenkins also has another book The Compost Toilet Handbook.  I just finished reading this one as well, and it is a great companion book.  It reviews the overall concepts of composting presented in The Humanure Handbook, and includes many excellent color photographs and case study examples of compost toilet sanitation systems in use throughout the world.

They also offer the highest quality soils and amendments to support the microbial and fungal life of your soil while you’re getting your compost toilet set up, as well as a variety of plants and seeds.  Check out this small colorful harvest!