Is Poo the Key to All Our Problems?

By Amelia Cayton Year 10 I will be exploring a few of the innovative and surprising new uses of poo such as its use as an alternate power source, paper and fuel for cars to name a few and whether these new uses will solve the problem of climate change taking recycling to a whole new level.

First of all, Poo Power.

The UN has calculated that if all of the world's human waste were to be collectedandusedfor biogas generation, the value couldbe ashighas $9.5 billion (or in other words enough to supply the electricity for 138 million households, the equivalent of powering all of Indonesia, Brazil and Ethiopia combined). So, it's possible in theory, but is it possible in reality? The water firm Thames Water has successfully been using human toilet waste to make electricity for the past decade, from either burning sludge or methane derived from its 13 million customers' toilets. Northumbrian Water currently uses anaerobic digestion to capture the methane and carbon dioxide released by bacteria, digesting the sludge and using it to drive its gas engines to create electricity. It also injects some gas directly into the grid. It has two biogas plants, which together have reduced the firm's annual £40m electricity bill by around 20%. In total it has saved the firm £15m a year. Rival UK water firms such as Severn Trent and Wessex Water are doing similar things to Northumbrian, and biogas production is common in countries such as China, Sweden and Germany. So… yes, we have the technology and poo-power is already in practice. But what are the

problems, why isn't it in practice globally? There are not many issues with this unique source of energy, but the main problem in implementing poo power on a larger scale is that despite the obvious financial and environmental advantages, this may not be sufficient to overcome what people call the "ick" factor of using our own waste to power our homes. But it is not just human poo that could solve our problems and change the world. Animal poo could also limit deforestation by providing an alternative paper source other than trees. This tree substitute is not as smelly as may think or any different to your average piece of paper. Reportedly being the same quality and a similar price to regular paper. Poo paper is being produced in Kenya already with 20% of their paper now being made from elephant poo. This is obviously environmentally friendly, and saves indigenous trees from being destroyed. But it's not just good for the environment; it's also good for the community, with 500 local people being able to pull themselves out of poverty with the new industry providing stable income and jobs for local people. There is also more opportunity for this business to grow and help more people and the environment as 600 elephants pass through the sanctuary producing this unique paper, meaning resources are not in short supply. 600 may not sound like a lot but anaverageelephant eats 250kg offoodeachday. Out ofthat amount about 50kg of dung is produced, making 125 sheets of A4 paper. The sanctuary produced 2,809 tonnes of paper from animal dung last year, and it expects that figure to triple by the end of this year. And this is not only happening in Kenya, but also in many other countries with elephant populations such as Thailand, Sri Lanka and India. Can this be generalised without elephants at every doorstep? Yes: this paper-making process can be applied to other animals with similar fibres found in their waste: cows, horses, donkeys, buffalos and others whose diets consist of grass. This means this sustainable business can be performed in most countries and the business can happen on a more global scale further helping the environment and more communities.To sum up, this poo paper could be a major contributor to the slowing down or even the stopping of deforestation and could help bring people out of poverty across the world. To conclude, although the majority of the population believe that poo is pretty useless, in reality animal and human poo could be a large part of the future. With cars and companies already being powered by this sustainable superhero and paper already being produced by it. I'm sure this underappreciated waste product will be the star of many future innovations and the answer to many of our problems, also very probably will be a key player in the fight to save our planet.

Sources

● bbc.co.uk/news/business-36162953 ● bbc.co.uk/news/business-37981485 ● corporate.uktv.co.uk/news/article/top-ten-bizarrescience/