Time to $hit or get off the pot

In today's Gazette is the story I've been expecting for a few weeks. I've watched the number of people camping alongside Monument and Fountain creeks increasing almost daily, and being me, I have been wondering... where has all their human waste (i.e. urine and feces, i.e. crap,) been going? Into the waterways, of course.

Sanitation amongst poverty is a problem that is often ignored until it becomes a major issue because it is doubly distasteful to deal with -- not only are you acknowledging 1) economic and social deficiencies within your own backyard, but also having to deal with 2) nasty conditions brought on by 1 -- in this case, that the small area of land surrounding these camps is not sufficient to process the amount of waste being deposited there. And that stinks. Literally.

But what is the solution? It sounds like some people are trying to maintain sanitary conditions (and perhaps their basic dignity) by creating makeshift latrines and honeybuckets, and some are just relieving themselves directly onto the ground or into the creek. Both pose many immediate problems, such as outbreaks of e.coli (or worse, think cholera). It also, however, has a long-term effect, especially regarding the latrines. Without exposure to sunlight and UV rays, the waste will not biodegrade, despite being buried. Underground decomposers may take months to process just one single human deposit, so think of the time required to process an entire latrine used by many people.

This area is at the crux of the two main waterways in Colorado Springs, with a public trail bisecting most of the camps. This waste is directly affecting everyone downstream, and has the potential to affect anyone passing through that area, even long after the camps themselves are cleaned up. Trail users with pets should be especially careful around there for the next few years, as dogs are great about finding mess (just ask my dogs).

So we all agree it's gross... what is the solution? Leaving port-o-lets down there might help, or they may just be destroyed. Let's hope that they aren't, and that the generous citizens who donated them are getting a good return on their investment, if you will. However, if that doesn't work, then what? Burying this amount of waste is a huge overburden to a confined land area and the waste simply will not degrade. The small, shallow creek does not have the flow to dilute such heavy waste. Packing it out is unrealistic, as it's hard to get die-hard outdoors people to carry their crap around in bags, not to mention a camp of diverse and down-on-their-luck people who really have enough to deal with as it is.

A possible solution may be smaller chemical toilets for those who are willing to maintain them. These bucket toilets, using the same kind of chemicals used in RVs and safe for septic dumping, given to those among the campers who are trying to maintain clean conditions (and it sounds like there are several), won't solve the problem, but it might help. A better situation would be installing a vault toilet (think forest service campgrounds). It would cost a few thousand to install and the location is not ideal for a long-term bathroom, but right now it may be the best way to prevent waste from ending up in public parks and waterways, not to mention private land and eventually, Pueblo. Also, it's possible that local septic pumping services might be willing to keep it pumped at free or reduced rates, in light of the situation.

Of course, the real solution is to get these people jobs, get them in a better frame of mind about their lives and their prospects, and to get them out of these tents and into a place of their own that they can take pride in and work to maintain. It will take a better economy, of course, but it also needs Colorado Springs, as a community, to stop bickering and work towards a common goal -- our own sense of place and the drive to take care of it. No more westside vs. eastside, no more liberal CC types vs. Briargate New Lifers, no more Doug Bruce vs. TOPS vs. Walmart vs. arts community vs. military. For God's sake, if a bunch of random people can live in tents in the winter and crap in a tree trunk next to the freeway and still find the drive to survive, we should be able to get it together as a city and priortize our immediate, and long-term goals for the place we call home. Especially since we're lucky enough to have one.

Read the story and tell me what you think.