American dogs and cats create 10 million tons of waste a year, and no one knows where it’s going.
Most of our pets’ poop either winds up in a landfill purgatory, where it’s embalmed practically forever in plastic bags, or sits on the ground until the next rainstorm washes it into the sewer where it can drift on down to rivers and beaches. You can compost the poop—just don’t use it with your vegetable garden, because the compost doesn’t heat up enough to kill pathogens such as E. coli., which could contaminate your homegrown produce and land up in your (very unhappy) belly.
If you have room in your backyard, you can bury an old garbage bin (note: far away from your vegetable garden) to use as a pet-waste composter.
Here’s a step-by-step description:
- Take and old garbage can and drill a dozen or so holes in the side.
- Cut out the bottom (A keyhole saw works great for this.)
- Dig a hole in the ground, deep enough for the garbage can.
- Toss some rocks or gravel in the hole for drainage and position the garbage can so it’s a little higher than the soil level.
- Place the lid on top (you might want to paint it with something like Dog Waste Composter.)
- When you scoop some poop, put it in the hole and sprinkle in some septic starter (available at hardware stores) and add some water.
Co-author of Chicken Soup for the Gardener’s Soul