Date: Sat, 25 May 2002 00:10:05 -0500
Reply-To: Chris Smith <chris.smith@AQUILA.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Chris Smith <chris.smith@AQUILA.NET>
Subject: Re: Living in a van
In-Reply-To: <p04330106b914004319a2@[192.168.99.102]>
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Many Chicago beaches will be closed from time to time again this year. The
main reason is a rise in bacteria that comes from 3 sources:
Sewage back-up during rains.
Dog-poop on beach near the water
Food left on beach near the water.
This is tried and true. The same thing happens in the wild as well, only
there is often no one testing every day to see if the water is clean. If
your going to wash, please do not let the wash water run into any body of
water. Soap kills many things needed for a healthy eco-system. this is
true for any soap. If for some reason you can't ensure that your wash
water will not flow into a body of water an old boy-scout trick is to take
a large plastic bag, fill it with leaves, punch holes in the bottom and
filter the wash water through it. Then when your done, burn the leaves in
your camp-fire and pack-out the bag. It's not a perfect solution, but it
has cleaned many streams on larger scout ranches.
At 09:49 AM 5/24/02, DaveC wrote:
>>Hey everybody,
>>
>> Lots of great ideas for camping, but please remember: NEVER WASH OR
>>BATHE IN A STREAM OR LAKE. Not even with biodegradable soap. All
>>'biodegradable' means is that it will break down in soil in a relatively
>>short time. Any soap that you put in water can kill the living things in the
>>water. You know, like pouring soap down your lungs. You should use
>>biodegradable soap, it is better for the environment and you can dump it in
>>the woods, just not near the water.
>>
>> Think about it -- if the soap was really that biodegradable, it would
>>degrade as soon as it hit your wash water, so it wouldn't clean your clothes.
>> It does stay active in the water and screws up lots of ecological
>> functions.
>> Have pity on some wildlife and dump in the woods, not the lake.
>
>I see people washing their dishes right in the stream/river all the
>time. I, exasperatedly, explain to each, how the ideas is to take
>water *out* of the river and wash them a ways inland. The waste water
>filters through the soil back to the water table. If you put your
>food waste (and worse!) directly into the water, folks downstream are
>sure to get diarrhea.
>
>Dave
>--
>Dave Carpenter
>
>Whatever you wish for me,
>May you have twice as much.
>
>"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from
>magic." -- Arthur C. Clarke
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