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Best practices for dealing with human waste in the great outdoors
Most people want to properly dispose of their waste, but they’re typically not prepared. Land managers can help users meet the moment.
Toilet paper waste on Mount Elbert in the San Isabel National Forest in Colorado.Shari Edelson, CC BY-ND As a researcher and a Ph.D. candidate who study human impacts on parks and protected areas, we have been thinking quite a lot about poop and ways people can tread more lightly on the landscape. A footbridge on the Chimney Tops Trail in the Great Smoky Mountains near the Appalachian Trail.Shari Edelson, CC BY-ND One of us – Derrick Taff – works as a science adviser to Leave No Trace, an organization that has educated outdoor recreationists on this issue for more than 30 years and has provided concrete guidance based on scientific research. But there are also places where it’s difficult if not impossible to dig a cat hole because of snow, frozen ground, shallow soil or exposed bedrock, or where leaving human waste in the outdoors is not recommended due to environmental conditions.
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