Reflections on the Work of Dr. Bindeshwar Pathak (1943-2023)

Imagine this… You’re six years old. Happy, healthy, active and curious about everything around you. Everyday, a woman comes to your house to clean the toilet. Your grandmother has told you not to touch her. You notice that when this woman leaves, your grandmother sprinkles the pure water of the Ganges river where the woman…

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This Tuesday: Composting Toilets & Supporting Codes and Policies

With the support of PHLUSH, the Jefferson County Sanitation HAT has been hard at work this year strengthening community relationships, surveying local residents on sanitation needs and educational interests, and collaborating with local and regional experts to address rural sanitation challenges.  A Housing+Sanitation Learning Series kicked off this fall, starting with a presentation of FLUSH:…

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Public Restrooms and COVID-19: Guidelines for Reopening

June 29, 2020 The re-opening of the economy during the continuing COVID-19 pandemic depends on the successful re-opening of toilet facilities. Retail businesses, manufacturing firms, trade workshops, food-processing units, schools and universities, and government institutions must protect people from the SARS-CoV-2 virus. And they are in a position to support and encourage social distancing, handwashing,…

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Emergency Sanitation Recommendations for Hurricane Florence

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Hurricane Florence is upon us. She is predicted to bring excessive rainfall (over 2 feet) and dangerous storm surge (up to 9-12 feet) to North and South Carolina. While some are rejoicing that wind speeds have been downgraded, NWS continues to predict life-threatening storm surge and unprecedented rainfall. As an organization focused on safe sanitation…

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Design Trends: Inclusion, Privacy, Efficiency, & Convenience

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We’ve been taking a closer look at contemporary restrooms and see some excellent trends in their design, namely inclusion, privacy, efficiency, and convenience. INCLUSION Inclusive, gender-neutral restrooms serve everyone from those caring for opposite-sex children or elders to gender non-conforming people. Unlike single unisex ADA toilet rooms, new space-efficient facilities bring everyone into the same…

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Transit’s missing link: The public toilet

This case study illustrates how the lack of a public restroom on a key route can render transit unusable for many riders and what community members can do to fight back. When it opened in late 2016, riders changing buses at an expensive new transit center in Washington State were dismayed to find they had…

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New documentary breaks taboos to explore America’s wastewater infrastructure

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Documentary filmmaker Karina Mangu-Ward is going to make a splash with FLUSH, which premieres worldwide on November 15th, 2017.  Mangu-Ward’s images are captivating, the editing is excellent, and the film features some of North America’s most important sanitation heroes. It will change the way you think about poop. We here at the other PHLUSH (Public Hygiene Lets Us…

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Poo to Peaches – Educating the Next Generation of Composting Toilet Users

Guest post by Stephen Thomas of Watershed Management Group. Every day, the average person flushes 10 gallons of clean drinking water down the toilet. This constitutes a waste of two precious resources: scarce water supplies and human manure, which could instead be composted to form a fertile soil amendment. While there are various  commercial composting…

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Let’s Legalize Composting & UD toilets in US

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Our friends at Recode have drafted model code for composting toilets with urine diversion (UD) and IAMPO is preparing to vote on it. This Portland-based group of scientists and policy advocates have made spectacular progress. Now Recode is calling on us to help make history. Please consider a tax-deductible donation to enable Recode’s Director to travel to California to address IAMPO officials. Details are in…

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Reflect Before You Flush

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This guest blog post is by John Gonzalez from the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District for World Toilet Day 2013. Please check out our ToiletsUSA page for more info. Follow #ToiletsUSA, #LiftTheLid, and #CelebrateTheToilet. Your ability to “flush and forget” is taken for granted. Period. In the US, access to proper and efficient sanitation does not represent the…

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