The World’s A Dirty Place. The PeePoo Bag Helps Clean It Up.

Many developing countries are without even basic sanitation. But the PeePoo bag is changing that.
May 4, 2010 10:35 AM ET

The World’s A Dirty Place. The PeePoo Bag Helps Clean It Up.

The World Health Organization estimates that as many as 894 million people are without potable water. That’s water for basic needs like drinking, cooking and — going potty.

It’s hard to believe, but the average human produces somewhere between 66 and 132 lbs of poop each year. Wow! And that’s dwarfed only by the amount of urine we produce — about 132 gallons.

We blush and smile — it’s an uncomfortable subject, our bathroom habits, that is. And here in the U.S., we don’t worry too much about it. It simply gets flushed away and forgotten. But in developing countries, that normal function we joke about and take for granted is a big problem. Every 15 seconds, a child somewhere in the world dies due to preventable diseases caused by contaminated water.

But Peepoople , a Swedish aid organization, is hoping to change that.

Peepoople has created the PeePoo bag, a self-contained, personal and portable toilet that is not only inexpensive to make and distribute, but is also completely sustainable.

The Peepoo bag uses no water, and keeps human waste out of freshwater supplies. But it can also be used a fertilizer, which can help promote sustainable food practices in impoverished areas.

The active ingredient in the bags is urea, one of the most commonly used fertilizers in the world. When human waste comes in contact with the urea contained in the bags, diseases and parasites are neutralized and ammonia is produced. The bags can then be buried and used as plant fertilizer.

Although the Peepoople website says that no supporting structure is needed to use the bags, it suggests that recycling a PET-plastic bottle by cutting it in half and using it for support can make taking care of business a little more comfortable.

At about 3 cents each, the Peepoo bag is a workable solution to an unfortunate situation. The Peepoo bag will help clean up supplies of available water in areas where water is scarce. And that will save lives.

It’s a dirty job, but I’m glad the Peepoo bag is around to do it.

What do you think of the Peepoo bag? Give your opinion here.

Greenopolis.com is dedicated to our users. We focus our attention on changing the world through recycling, waste-to-energy and conservation. We reward our users for their sustainable behaviors on our website, through our Greenopolis recycling kiosks and with curbside recycling programs.

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