The big necessity : the unmentionable world of human waste and why it matters /

Human waste is a major public health threat: population growth is taxing even the most advanced sewage systems, and the disease spread by waste kills more people worldwide every year than any other single cause of death. Even in America, 1.95 million people have no access to an indoor toilet. Yet th...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: George, Rose, 1969-
Format: Book
Language:English
Published: New York : Metropolitan Books, 2008.
Edition:1st ed.
Subjects:
Online Access:Contributor biographical information
Publisher description
Description
Summary:Human waste is a major public health threat: population growth is taxing even the most advanced sewage systems, and the disease spread by waste kills more people worldwide every year than any other single cause of death. Even in America, 1.95 million people have no access to an indoor toilet. Yet the subject remains unmentionable. The Big Necessity takes aim at the taboo, revealing everything that matters about how people do--and don't--deal with their own waste. George also explores the infrastructure disasters waiting to happen and the potential saviors: from China's five million biogas digesters to the U.S. Army's personal lasers used by soldiers to zap their feces in the field.
Physical Description:288 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm.
Bibliography:Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN:9780805082715
0805082719