Our humble friend, the flush toilet, has been with us in some form or another ... though not always close or convenient. The ancient civilizations of the Indus Valley and Minos, the Roman Empire, and China before the Western Han Dynasty, all of them knew it well.

Sir John Harington, godson of Queen Elizabeth I, invented an indoor flushing toilet in 1596. He installed one in his own home and another in his godmother's Richmond Palace. The rest of the Elizabethan world sniffed at Sir John's invention, and did not like the fragrance. Sir John never built another.

Water, the substance we flush with, has been around even longer. Albeit, once again, not always where and when we need it.

Now interesting times are upon us, and water has become a global concern. We're either drowning in it, or trying to wrest it from our neighbors in ways both naughty and deceptively nice.

It is becoming clear that the latter situation will grow more prevalent over the coming decades. Hence, conserve we must.

But how? This particular water activity is, well, harder to hold back on than most.

This Hub will delve into a couple of alternatives for relieving this dilemma.

Yup, we're gonna go there.

There's just ... something ... about those two words put together, no?

While dung has been burned for fuel for millenia, incinerating toilets have only been around since the early 1900s. They run on electricity or gas, and they basically zap the matters they're confronted with into a fine ash.

The results can then be disposed of without causing yucky diseases, or used to enrich the soil, although many of the nutrients are burned away in the process.

Incinerating toilets are practically odorless when properly installed and ventilated. They are perfect for RVs and houseboats because there is so little residue.

While incinerating toilets are completely waterless (good), they also use quite a bit of energy. Gas models can release polluting vapors, and electric models will enlarge a household's carbon footprint (not so good). Chemicals and catalysts may be required for proper performance.

Depending on the model, users may also need to put a custom ($$$) paper liner in the pan before making a deposit.

One possible drawback is that at times, you may find yourself highly motivated, but you've gotta wait for the last person's stuff to incinerate before you can act on that impulse.

Incinerating toilets tend to be quite pricy. Building your own is beyond the reach of all but the most gifted and determined (and fearless) do-it-yourselfers.

Apparently they're also beyond the reach of Amazon and eBay, and this Hub is a few ads poorer for it. That's okay ... we don't want to bog things down too much.

Some believe that the composting toilet was invented by Envirolet in the 1970s, but toilets using earth or sawdust rather than water have a much longer and richer history than that

Composting toilets differ from outhouses because layers of earth and/or sawdust are added after each use. The compost can then be used in the ornamental garden. (Authorities differ on when -- if ever -- human waste compost can be used on plantings meant for human consumption. Pre-composted waste is a definite no-no.).

Hole digging-and-filling technology has been around since, well, people first started.

Thomas Jefferson installed an indoor earth closet at his Monticello estate. His commode was powered by pulleys and slaves.

The Rev. Henry Moule filed the first patent on his portable(!) indoor earth closet in 1860. Moule's closet was semi automatic, operated by seat pressure and closing/opening the lid. To clean it, users employed good old-fashioned tech -- they hauled the muck out to the garden and buried it. 

Today's composting toilets are powered by human lugging and/or solar, wind or electricity. Prices run from the cost of 5- or 10-gallon buckets plus a used seat (and maybe some used ventilation pipe), to a seat in first-class, complete with bidet.

Composting toilets can be a do-it-yourselfer's dream. The Joseph Jenkins, Inc. site is an invaluable source of info on building composting toilets, and on processing and using the compost.