Hi Eve,

Our organization works exclusively on container-based systems (Humanure composting and more recently hybrid approaches) and I write a lot of proposals, and give training talks and presentations.

I have started to call the contents of the toilet, toilet material. We use dry cover material and do not urine divert, so excreta and other terms fall short of describing what's in the container.

For example, I designed and installed (with the help of a large team)a compost toilet system for the Standing Rock protest camp (Nov. 2016 - March 2017). We collected all of the toilet material from the Loveable Loos in compostable Biobags and stored it through the extreme North Dakota winter in shipping containers. In March, we composted all of the bags — urine, feces, toilet paper, and saw dust.

When the material is composting we refer to it as the compost matrix. When it's processed and mature we call it compost.

Great question...

We call the products organic fertilizer or organic manure. In China, we have had a long history of using human manure and animal wastes as fertilizer. The practice traces back to 4,000 years ago. In a traditional agriculrural soceity, the Chinese people had a friendly attitude towards urine and poop as they contain all the nutritions the crops need. We have had a lot of proverbs and sayings to praise the application of them, for instance, "Manure is the most valuable crop booster", "A pot of urine is worth 3 pots of grass/wood ash in terms of phosphorus supply", etc. Chemical fertilizers have totally replaced the use of organic fertilizer in modern agriculture as the handling processes of manure are complicated and labour-intensive. It is a sad case scenario.

Hi there EcoLatrine

Love your toilets!

I think solid waste works, but it is very general, but at least is distinguished from sludge.

Jus awkward as some CBS units have urine as well (but no water) meaning it is no longer a solid product.

I am using solid waste / excreta and urine, especially as they tend to have two different treatment processes.

Well I guess that will do- thanks for your ANSWERS and commentS !

To answer this question:

I have just realised I have no idea of the word I should use for 'products' from the UDDT/CBS type toilets...

If it's a UDDT (urine-diverting dry toilet), then you have exactly two (or three) products:
- Urine
- Dried feces, or dried fecal matter (if you prefer)
- or and possibly anal washwater if there is a third outlet for anal washing with water

If it's a CBS (container-based sanitation) where urine and feces are mixed, then I suppose you could call it:
- human excreta, or "collected human excreta", or "mixed human excreta"

If in addition water is added to the mixture then it's
- fecal sludge

The full definition of faecal sludge is here:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fecal_sludge_management

But I agree with user bsoutherland (Bruce) who said it depends on the audience. If you write for the academic audience then I would use those correct terms as mentioned above. If it's for the general public, then maybe something more "casual" (local language?) works better.

User Ecolatrine (Henriette) said:
"It may be a good idea to standardize the terminology."

I fully agree with that statement. For that purpose we have the EAWAG compendium (www.susana.org/en/knowledge-hub/resource.../library/details/454). Also I am spending many hours per week on improving all the relevant Wikipedia articles, so that Wikipedia can be our "go to" place for standard terminologies.

See e.g. the Wikipedia article on CBS and help me to improve it?:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Container-based_sanitation

Regards,
Elisabeth

Sludge is the solid component left from a liquid process, so pit latrine contents would not really be sludge. If someone wants to use that term, it's not wildly off.

Septage is what is pumped from septic tanks.

Biosolids is a term coined by the wastewater industry to improve the image of process sewage sludge.

The terms product and end-product are less tied to more specific outcomes implied by the terms sludge, waste, biosolids etc.

Our website is down thanks to sad circumstances so we are re-launching a new site in August.

Hello Eve

We call the combination of fecal matter, urine and sawdust - waste product. The composting or biogas processes of the waste product provides a "value product".
Waste mixed with water, according to me, is sludge. It is a difficult topic to discuss in general, and some people may be offended by words like shit and piss, regardless of the audience. It may be a good idea to standardize the terminology.
Do you think "solid waste" and urine can do the trick?

Hey thanks a lot for your reply.

Yes, it is definitely audience dependent! I am not shy of using a broad range of words for it! I was wondering for my academic audience, especially for my PhD: I need a consistent reference to the products in CBS (that can account for the varieites)

Perhaps I'll just use piss and shit@!

Thanks Carol!

That's quite a broad term, faecal sludge is also used for pit latrine and septic waste (differentiated from biosolids from waste-waters I thought?)

As in the new term of faecal sludge management for the whole area of the globes who rely on on-site sanitation.

I am actually using the term solid/faecal and urine wastes so far, but I guess the 'product' is far better as of course, it refers to the potential for re-use of the faecal products.

Thanks for your advice, and I look forward to exploring your website

Here is my unofficial reply to the question about what to call UDDT/BBS products.

I use the following, depending on the audience/readers.
If separated: Urine and feces. Solid and liquid waste. Solid and liquid resources. Shit and Piss. Poo/poop and Pee.
If not separated: excreta/excretion, deposit, fecal sludge, waste product, humanure or resources.

Endproduct

Biosolids and fecal sludge are from conventional wastewater plants.

Hi there,

I have just realised I have no idea of the word I should use for 'products' from the UDDT/CBS type toilets...

Does anyone have advice? Am I justified to use faecal sludge? Or biosolids? Is there a special name for this I have completely missed?

Thanks (confused)

eve