Sludge Watch ==> International Toilet Museum

[Maureen Reilly]

Sludgewatch Admin:
Here is the home page of the Internation Toilet Museum in Sulabh:

http://www.sulabhtoiletmuseum.org/


And here is a story about it from the Canadian Broadcast Corp (CBC):



.......................................
http://www.cbc.ca/news/viewpoint/vp_copeland/20040706.html


JEREMY COPELAND:
The International Toilet Museum
CBC News Viewpoint | July 06, 2004 | More from Jeremy Copeland

Delhi is home to what may be the world's only toilet museum. "You're joking, 
right?" was how a German friend responded when I told him about the Sulabh 
International Museum of Toilets.

Like many people, I find it hard not to laugh and make jokes when talking 
about toilets, but in India, as in many other developing countries, 
sanitation is a deadly serious subject. If nothing else, a trip to the 
toilet museum will make you appreciate the access to toilets we take for 
granted in the West.

About 700 million people in India don't have access to proper toilets. It's 
a problem that not only looks and smells bad but also poses serious health 
risks. Untreated human waste can cause many diseases, including cholera, 
dysentery and diarrhea.

Despite the appalling situation India now finds itself in, it was, according 
to the Museum of Toilets, the first place in the world to have sanitary 
toilets in houses. As far back as 2500 BC a community along a northern 
Indian valley developed a drainage system where water from toilets in each 
house flowed into a main sewer.

Hinduism, the religion of about 800 million Indians, had written laws for 
toilet etiquette 3,500 years ago. There were practical rules that included 
the minimum distance one should be from rivers or water sources before 
urinating or defecating. There were also some unusual rules, including 
separate codes for married and unmarried people.

Here's one example of a rule aimed at someone who is married: first one 
covers one's head, and then "while observing silence and facing north in the 
day and south in the night one could defecate."

The Romans took a more open approach to relieving themselves. As the man who 
guided me through the toilet museum not so eloquently pointed out, the Roman 
approach was apparently based on the philosophy that a country that dumps 
together stays together. They built public toilets where up to 200 people 
would sit along the edges of the room and relieve themselves while being 
entertained by musicians.

It took many parts of Europe more than 1,000 years to get anywhere nearly as 
organized about dealing with human waste. During medieval times people in 
many cities would simply empty their potties onto the street at night. Pigs 
were allowed to roam freely to deal with the waste.

India now lags far behind the West in sanitary matters. Here are some of the 
smelly facts:

India's more than one billion people produce about 900 million litres of 
urine and 135 million kilograms of human waste per day. Many men pee against 
any old wall, even on busy streets. Anyone who has looked out a train window 
in India will have likely seen slum dwellers squatting by the tracks taking 
a dump. They have nowhere else to go.

Sulabh International, which runs the Museum of Toilets, is one of the 
organizations working to provide poor Indians access to toilets. Since 1970 
Sulabh has constructed public toilet complexes across India, making more 
than one million toilets available.

There is a wide range of types of toilets in India. These include western 
sit-down style toilets, squat toilets and even toilets that look like 
western ones but have platforms built on either side of the seat so people 
have the option to climb up and squat.

There is a cultural gap in the use of toilets. I recently had a group of men 
come over and install air-conditioners in my apartment. It was a hot day and 
I gave them water while they worked. After a few hours the men left and it 
was only then that I discovered the mess they had left in my bathroom. It 
seems the Indian workers had mastered the art of flushing, but they hadn't 
quite grasped the concept of lifting the toilet seat before doing a number 
one.

But I digress. The museum has many examples of entrepreneurs who over the 
years have tried different ways to improve the toilet. In 1929, an American 
electrician patented the first electric chamber pot for use on cold nights. 
In 1966, a Chicago hairdresser took out a patent for a toilet seat that had 
a built in "buttock-stimulator" for relieving constipation. Joseph Cayetty 
deserves special mention because in 1857 he invented that most important of 
bathroom accessories: toilet paper.

The most modern toilet on display in the museum is the Incinolet Electric 
Toilet. It was developed by the U.S. naval forces to be used in submarines. 
The toilet takes the W out of WC (water closet). After using the water-free 
toilet, you simply close the lid and press a button. Everything in the bowl 
is burned at 760 degrees Celsius and reduced to about one spoonful of 
odourless ashes.

The museum has a framed copy of a report from last April's Hindustan Times 
about one of the most expensive toilet seats ever made. It was apparently a 
present Ben Affleck gave to Jennifer Lopez when they were engaged. The seat 
is adorned with rubies, sapphires, pearls and diamonds set in plastic so 
J-Lo's bottom wouldn't get scratched. The seat reportedly cost more than 
$100,000. According to the article Affleck told a friend, "Jennifer is my 
princess and she deserves only the best – even when it comes to toilets."

I can't help but wonder if Ben asked not only for his engagement ring but 
also his toilet seat to be returned when the famous couple broke off their 
engagement.