Biosolids! [Who Gives a Poop? by Heather L. Montgomery]
Scientists, engineers, veterinarians, even college students--people all over the world are discovering the power of poop. A guy in England powers a street lamp with pet poo. A scientist uses scat to solve the mystery of a vanishing cave-dwelling critter. Undergrads turn astronaut waste into plastic – for use as a wrench on Mars!
Poop, doo-doo, scat, feces, whatever you call it, it's everywhere. And it's disgusting. But in this book, you'll see that this waste is packed with potential. It's a window into the world of wildlife, and some people are willing to go to extremes to make use of this so-called crap. One woman spent three months videotaping elephants, giraffes, and rhinos pooping in the zoo. In a quest for precious cheetah poo another scientist army-crawled through the mud risking her life between an adult elephant and a water buffalo. And every week an entire team of folks swallow their pride and deliver their own poop to medical facilities. There, someone swirls, separates, and ships it off to a hospital to be transplanted into another human.
In journalistic style similar to Something Rotten, this middle grade narrative nonfiction follows the author as she asks the question: Who uses poo? Although it is packed with potty humor, this narrative holds weighty matter too: The discovery of a nutrient cycle that powers the ocean ecosystem. Solutions for the energetic needs of our society. Poo even has the power to save human lives.
I saw a Vice News special on waste management in New York City a few years back. I imagine I was already interested in learning about waste management when I stumbled upon it, but since then, at least, the question of biosolids and their role in environmental conservation has stayed on my mind. So I'm always up for learning about poop. Heather L. Montgomery's Who Gives a Poop? is a surprisingly technical segue into the world of poop science and its many disciplines.
I know I'm really into a book when I can't stop talking about it to my family. Random factoids about poop always found their way into conversation. Raccoons pooping at heights, panda poo being a supercatalyst - I learned a lot reading this book. I do wonder how well a middle grade reader will comprehend the language or science concepts. Middle school was more than 15 years ago for me. Then again I expected to go to college with a typewriter, and even that was not the case. Surely the super eager scientists in the making will eagerly devour this book, exposing themselves to new ways of thinking of environmental interconnectedness. Anyone else might have to take self-learning a bit farther.
The journal like narration I found a bit corny. Did these events happen as they were being recounted or was this a stylistic choice for dramatic effect? However the progression through chapters felt very natural. Because I ended up enjoying this book as much as I did I'm giving it 5 stars. I would recommend this book not only to middle schoolers, but for any science-minded youths and all persons interested in learning more about environmental waste stages and their roles in their respective cycles.
Poop, doo-doo, scat, feces, whatever you call it, it's everywhere. And it's disgusting. But in this book, you'll see that this waste is packed with potential. It's a window into the world of wildlife, and some people are willing to go to extremes to make use of this so-called crap. One woman spent three months videotaping elephants, giraffes, and rhinos pooping in the zoo. In a quest for precious cheetah poo another scientist army-crawled through the mud risking her life between an adult elephant and a water buffalo. And every week an entire team of folks swallow their pride and deliver their own poop to medical facilities. There, someone swirls, separates, and ships it off to a hospital to be transplanted into another human.
In journalistic style similar to Something Rotten, this middle grade narrative nonfiction follows the author as she asks the question: Who uses poo? Although it is packed with potty humor, this narrative holds weighty matter too: The discovery of a nutrient cycle that powers the ocean ecosystem. Solutions for the energetic needs of our society. Poo even has the power to save human lives.
I saw a Vice News special on waste management in New York City a few years back. I imagine I was already interested in learning about waste management when I stumbled upon it, but since then, at least, the question of biosolids and their role in environmental conservation has stayed on my mind. So I'm always up for learning about poop. Heather L. Montgomery's Who Gives a Poop? is a surprisingly technical segue into the world of poop science and its many disciplines.
I know I'm really into a book when I can't stop talking about it to my family. Random factoids about poop always found their way into conversation. Raccoons pooping at heights, panda poo being a supercatalyst - I learned a lot reading this book. I do wonder how well a middle grade reader will comprehend the language or science concepts. Middle school was more than 15 years ago for me. Then again I expected to go to college with a typewriter, and even that was not the case. Surely the super eager scientists in the making will eagerly devour this book, exposing themselves to new ways of thinking of environmental interconnectedness. Anyone else might have to take self-learning a bit farther.
The journal like narration I found a bit corny. Did these events happen as they were being recounted or was this a stylistic choice for dramatic effect? However the progression through chapters felt very natural. Because I ended up enjoying this book as much as I did I'm giving it 5 stars. I would recommend this book not only to middle schoolers, but for any science-minded youths and all persons interested in learning more about environmental waste stages and their roles in their respective cycles.
Who Gives a Poop is to be published September 08, 2020.
POO (humanure) and Biosolids are NOT the same thing!!
ReplyDeleteIt is so important to understand that sewer sludge (aka biosolids) is NOT just human excrement - it is a concentration of all domestic and industrial pollutants that go down drains and sewers. It has some good stuff in it, which plants can use, but also thousands of other contaminants. Please read what independent scientists have to say on this issue -
Prof. Murray McBride, Cornell University - "Is it reasonable to conclude that there is little or no risk of land-applying a material (biosolids) containing unknown concentrations of thousands of chemicals with undetermined toxicities?" ... "Once contaminated, stopping the application of pollutants such as metals and many organic chemicals that are in sewage biosolids will not correct the problem. The contamination will remain for decades or centuries"
Norwegian Scientific Committee for Food and Environment - "biosolids application may be causing persistent, pernicious and almost totally ignored contamination of agricultural land"
Switzerland has completely banned the use of biosolids on agricultural soils because of "the risk of irreversible damage to the soil, the danger to public health and possible negative effects on the quality of the food farmers produce" https://bit.ly/2Fc6ObP
The Swedish Government- "since biosolids contain environmental and health hazardous substances, drug residues and microplastics, our task force will propose a ban on spreading sewage sludge on farmland" https://bit.ly/2PRKdFk
The German Environment Agency - "With the precautionary principle and in light of the pollutants found in biosolids, we deem the agricultural use of biosolids to be a serious public health & environmental hazard & advocate that this practice be phased out" https://bit.ly/2SXfLIQ
Dr. Sierra Rayne - "The science doesn't support the disposal of sewage sludge across the landscape. The supposed benefits are more than offset by the risks to human and environmental health. As scientists, we have been watching the issue with increasing concern. An unimaginably large number of chemical and biological contaminants exist in these materials, and they persist in the product up to, and after, land disposal. Scientific investigations have identified only a tiny fraction of the total contaminant load. We cannot even say with any degree of confidence what the true range of contaminant risk is from the sludge ... Governments are playing Russian roulette with sewage sludge. Over time, there is a high probability this game will be lost at the public's expense."
Brian Bienkowski (Scientific American - May 12, 2014) - "Sewage sludge used as fertilizer on farms can leave traces of prescription drugs and household chemicals deep in the soil, according to a new study by federal scientists. The findings suggest that the widespread use of biosolids could contaminate groundwater near farms with a variety of chemicals, including anti-depressants such as Prozac and hormone-disrupting compounds in antibacterial soaps ...The researchers looked for 57 “emerging” contaminants that are increasingly showing up in the environment. Ten were detected in the soil at depths between 7 and 50 inches 18 months after the treated sludge was applied. None was in the field’s soil beforehand... Other studies have found hormones, detergents, fragrances, drugs, disinfectants, and plasticizers in treated sludge used as fertilizer. But this is the first study to show how they can persist and move in soil."
For more science on this important issue see -
"Polluting for Profit"-The "Biosolids" Business https://bit.ly/2DKNpff
Biosolids dangers- bit.ly/2EuAP3K
USA Scientists- https://bit.ly/2VRnush
UK Scientists - https://bit.ly/2OvKdcu
Canadian Scientists- http://bit.ly/1sb2qOP
The Guardian- https://bit.ly/2LPWNSM
UK Leaked Gov't Report - bit.ly/36WbTxi