Page 4 RAIN December 1977 Is greywater reuse something new and dangerous? The "suds-saver" is a greywater recycling system long used and accepted in the U.S.-even though thousands of housewives can come in physical contact with the greywater. The suds-saver is a ;W-gallon tank located next to the washer which stores the rinse-water from one load of washing for use in washing the next load. -Peter Wars'hall - The recently released Rural Wastewater Disposal Alternatives report prepared by the California office of Appropriate Technology recommends the development of On-Sit·e Wastewater fylanagement Districts which would licei:ise, certify, periodically inspect and possibly m~intain on-site sewage systems. What is interesting is that their recommendations are for institutional arrangements (licensing, inspection, etc.) rather than technological (sewage plants). They are recognizing that the inherently increased people-involvement common in small-scale systems is a fundamentally different situati6n than the design of large me.chanized systems, but a situation where public safety can be equally well met while providing much lower cost performance. The focus on continuing people-to-people relationships makes ·possible an interesting shift from expensive monolithic "overkill and forget" systems to a pragmatic incrementalism which underlies the re.st of the recommended polic\e~. Instead of requiring treatme'nt facilities'to handle the most outrageously wasteful suburban water :use as is common in most codes, • they suggest putting in what you think you need, and ;i way to check ,if it is overloaded. If it is, change it. P~t in a few more feet of leaching line or add another 55-gallon drum sand filter to increase your capacity. Soils vary incredib_ly in their ability to treat and absorb wa~_er, and no effective means has been dev.eloped to predict accurately their performance and necessary treatment designs. Lifestyle patterns vary even more so. What works best in this great rich variability may ~nvolve management of any or all steps from our values through source reduction to final treatment methods. Installation of a few low flush toilets in a community may avoid the need for a wh9le central sewe,r system. Adding a grease trap may be wiser and cheaper than replacing clogged leach lines. Maintenance and pumping may be a cheaper alternative to repl~cing failed septic systems. Keeping kitchen grease out of the drain lines can be a much more sensible and economical approach than dealing with it once it is there clogging pipes and soils. Peter Warshall suggests th.at you simply-don't let the grease get into the plumbing-'wash dishes in a plastic basin and throw the washwater out of doors. Even more simply, use greasy foods or cooking techniques less often. A void the problems. GREYWATERTREATMENT Removal of toilet wastes and kitchen garbage from household wastewater and s_eparate treatment of them by composting dramatically lessens the need for treatment of the remaining wastewater (or greywater, as it looks and is frequently called). Dry toilets and other water-conserving measures·also significantly reduce (by two-thirds) the volume of water to be treated. Such actions together can lower.household wastewater
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