[GreenYes] Re: Growing Global Interest in Food Waste Disposers

["Kendall Christiansen" <kendall@no.address>]

Perhaps, but that's not what the empirical research suggests:  no surprises
here; numerous studies find that water usage associated with disposer is
generally regarded as de minimis, even unmeasurable, in terms of typical
household consumption, and entirely subject to existing patterns of use
related to meal prep and clean-up.  Probably ten things to do to reduce
household consumption of water (surprising percentage actually devoted to
external use) before thinking about a disposer, e.g., low-flow/dual-flush
toilets, low-flow showerheads, front-loading/EnergyStar washing machines,
etc.

 

In NYC, the progressive/pioneering Battery Park City development has
required disposers in its last nine or so residential towers, and found them
fully compatible with the onsite blackwater treatment systems they also
require.  And when they asked the City what to do with the screened solids,
the response was to "flush 'em down the sewer", because Manhattan's
wastewater is too 'light' for the WWTP to function effectively.

 

And if you read the recent Harper's "Wasteland" article (or the City's
recent Solid Waste Management Plan), you'll note that effectively 100% of
NYC's biosolids are beneficially reused, with over half processed into
fertilizer pellets and successfully marketed.  Kate Ascher's wonderful "The
Works" contains an annotated illustration of that process.

 

Kendall Christiansen

Gaia Strategies

 

  _____  

From: Mary Lou Van Deventer [mailto:marylouvan@no.address] 
Sent: Friday, February 29, 2008 2:36 PM
To: stephan.pollard@no.address
Cc: 'Anne Peters'; GreenYes@no.address; Kendall Christiansen
Subject: Re: [GreenYes] Re: Growing Global Interest in Food Waste Disposers

 

When we consider kitchen garbage grinders and the sewage system, we need to
plan with expected water shortages in mind.  Here's an update from the
Environmental News Service.  

 

Mary Lou Van Deventer 

Urban Ore, Berkeley, CA 

To End the Age of Waste