Plastuc and poop
I agree. Us humans are rather organic in our waste. Adding more just seems wrong.
Some areas that are more akin to a feedlot in waste managment needs special care.
I for one don’t want to play god with the rules.
Common sense should prevail. Don’t trust the government or the crusades.
Plastics thread
Yes, plastics are not biodegradable, in other words, the only thing that will make plastic disappear is erosion. It is destructive in its disposal as well as its production. I am not trying to preach to anyone here, but I think what needs to be pointed out is that the pack out your own feces regulations are in place because there too many people in that particular area who don’t know about or won’t practice no trace camping.
The bottom line is that the regulations are in place because waste disposal has become a health issue, not an environmental issue.
environmental vs health
You are right, most human waste issues are a health concern, rather than an environmental concern. Too many people pooping and peeing in the same place isn’t necessarily bad for the environment, eventually it will all break down. But who wants to camp and hike on a human waste dump? If you don’t want to be contributing to this problem, I suggest you only hike or paddle where no other people have been or will be.
I guess one exception to this rule is human waste in dry, desert environments. Rather than “going” well away from the water’s edge, you should actually urinate in the current of the river. If you urinated away from the water, the chemicals and acid from your urine would sit on the surface for years, actually interferring with normal flora, due to the lack of rain and moisture to flush it away. On my last San Juan trip, the bank at one of the campsites was covered with a slimy, green algae that was growing on the urine-soaked sand where people hadn’t quite made it to the river’s edge. Come next Spring when the water rises (if it comes up high enough), this will be washed away, but anyone urinating away from the water would kill any existing flora, and be creating a small pocket of unnatural growth that would not wash away. I’d say this is definitely an impact on the environment. Feces and toilet paper would sit on top of the rock or sand without degrading for years.
As for solid waste, rafters have followed the pack it out rule without producing any plastic waste for years. Army surplus rocket boxes (metal) are used as toilets. At the end of the trip, the boxes are hooked to an RV dump station and emptied and flushed. The rocket boxes are then reused. Granted, the box liner and connections used to dump and clean the boxes are made out of plastic, but these are reused year after year and not thrown away. But can anyone honestly say they don’t own or use anything made of plastic?
Just squat !
Holy smokes ! All this to do about takeing a friggin dump ! Dig a hole with your shoe, Squat,
and wipe with a rock or stick. Don’t be shy now
we won’t watch ! Heck why even burry it ? The dung beetles will make a short lunch of it soon enough anyway ! No seriously now just bring a small folding shovel or use a stick or long rock to dig a hole and , JUST SQUAT ! This works well in our area as Montana has so few people that pooped up islands are not a problem yet. So please don’t come here and poop on our islands !
Thank you !
unreal
i cannot believe you people are still discussing this!!!
YEAH!
This needs to go to the B&B with all the other crap.
Of course some areas have different
rules. One place I looked at says to do it below the high tide line and let nature take it away.
Groovy groover
When I was busted for not having the proper portable poop protocol it was suggested that I just get a paint can. Cheap, simple and legal.
I have developed
a technique for holding it in for up to four days. Interested parties contact me off line.
No way!
You’re full of it.
Do you wear gloves…
Where?
Where are paint cans legal groovers? They wouldn’t pass on any NPS/BLM/USFS river I’ve ever been on…it would make things a lot simpler, though.
I don’t know
Just what I was told by the rangers on federal land in western Colorado.
The Jinker - poop tube
This web page may answer some of your questions
http://www.thejinker.com/index.html
I’ve already had a really weird day …
and night, and now reading a lengthy discussion about human waste disposal on islands at 4 in the morning just tops it off!
for real?
all the stuff that is wrong with the world which is caused by man, and you guys are worried over a little crap. Im glad I am not a tree hugging hippie kayaker. Wonder what all the animals and fish do? Which device do they use?
No wonder hippies smell so bad…
Lotta crap
Last weekend I was in Dominguez Canyon on the Gunnison. A few years ago my buddy and I had the whole canyon to ourselves, this year there were 150 people who bothered to sign in at the Escolante put in.
That’s a lot of crap concentrated in one place and would quickly overwhelm the area making it a not so pleasant locale. That’s assuming that most will at least bury their scat and hopefully not under my tent.
To me packing my poop is a small price to pay to maintain the quality of my experience.
pooping on islands redux
– Last Updated: Jun-17-06 8:27 PM EST –
OK this is just nUtZ. Poop on islands! All you want. Everyone that shudders at the "enviromental impact" get a grip. Your part of nature too. And have you ever seen a pile of Moose or Bear scat by the water? They have alot more on deposit with mother nature than we ever will. Packing it out in a ZIPLOK baggy and tossing it has way more impact enviromentally speaking than letting it breakdown naturally over 7-10days versus entombing it in plastic for a couple hundred years. Ever seen a fish kill washed up on the beach for miles. (alewives) Within 2 months there's no trace. Relax, enjoy the scenery.
NOTE: Former member of GreenPeace
New Gadget for poop transfortation
Waste management - Check out www.thejinker.com.
What will they think up next!??
Has anyone tried this approach?
As person who occasionally likes a glass of wine while planning my paddling trips, I’ve hit on a novel approach to the poop problem associated with island camping. This idea has stood me in good stead amongst the island gulls and cormorants here in Michigan. What is this environmentally safe solution you ask? Well, what I do is just use the wine cork. Pop it in and leave it there for the duration of the trip. Works great with no negative impact to the environment. Although if I remember rightly, I have been impacted on occasion while using it and other times caution is required for removal. The price is right and biodegradable cork won’t fill up the landfills either. So grab a bottle of wine, read what’s on the website, and save the cork! It really does work. I scat you not!