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The growth of sea kayaking has led to increased human use of maritime wilderness areas. Like most kayakers, I try to keep wilderness clean and free of waste, especially my own. To that end, I've used and been disappointed by various methods of human waste disposal. For example, the "Tupperware method" can be potentially messy, starting with day two. And when it's time to empty the contents into the toilet, there's the soiled container to clean. Also, while "porta potties" have been developed for boaters, I have yet to see one that stores easily in a kayak.

Human waste disposal is also a growing problem for climbers and hikers. I've noticed precious pieces of land ruined by human "cat holes." In some places, such as the high trails of California's Mt. Whitney, Leave No Trace (LNT) camping is required. Whether required or not, LNT is an environmentally responsible practice that would be more readily accepted if there were convenient techniques for taking care of our metabolic business.

Here's a less messy LNT method that won't ruin the land. With this approach, you start each use with clean materials, you don't have to revisit the previous days' work until you are ready to flush, and you end up with mostly clean containers. It also provides a larger, easier-to-hit, non-tippy target, and the materials store easily in a kayak.

The "wrap" method is intended for use by individuals. It is not intended to be a substitute for large group latrines. If your group is so big that large amounts of urine collect in one place, odor might be a problem. But there's a bigger, more fundamental issue: It would be irresponsible for a large group not to have a portable latrine, as are commonly used by groups such as Outward Bound. Planners should consider this before taking large groups into fragile wilderness.

Materials

To get started with the wrap method, you'll need the following:

One sheet of page-size (broadsheet) newsprint or printed newspaper per use.

One sandwich-size plastic bag per use. (Most companies make "storage" and "freezer" grades. The freezer bags are heavier and what I use.)

One gallon-size plastic bag per week. Again, freezer-grade is best.

Wrap and Flush

When it comes time to do your business, you can grab the newspaper (part of the normal routine for many) and proceed as follows:

Urinate first. My LNT mentors tell me that human urine in modest quantities is not a significant problem on land, but the best practice would be to take care of it in the ocean or on the beach below the high-tide line. You can also spread the newsprint on an uphill grade so the urine runs off and doesn't collect on the paper, saturating and softening it.

Squat over the lower third of the newsprint sheet, adding your toilet paper after use. Holding the newsprint at the sides, roll the newsprint up from the bottom a few turns, fold in the outside edges, and fold toward the top again. You shouldn't have to touch anything other than dry newsprint and should be left with a package that fits neatly into the sandwich bag. Squeeze as much air as possible out of the sandwich bag before zip sealing. (If expecting very loose stool, fold up the lower half of the page to double the surface area, which will help eliminate a mess.)

Accumulate the sealed sandwich bags in the gallon bag.

When ready to flush, empty the individual wraps from each sandwich bag into the toilet one at a time, flushing in between. If the newsprint hasn't already soaked up moisture, let it soak in the toilet for a few seconds to give the paper time to soften enough to come apart easily. To further avoid clogging the toilet, use a garden trowel or coat hanger to break the wrapped package into two or more pieces before flushing. With very large wraps, it might be necessary to use the trowel or coat hanger to hold back some of the material during flushing and use a second flush for the remaining material.

The used plastic bags may have a mild residual odor but are mostly clean. I usually rinse them, mark them with a permanent felt-tip marker and re-use them for the same purpose. Rinsing with a mild bleach solution completely eliminates residual odor. Alternatively, you could put the empty sandwich bags back into the gallon bag, seal and throw them out in the trash. Although less environmentally friendly, this approach can be more convenient and tenable for some.

Notes and Nuances

Following is some information about the materials recommended for this process that may be helpful for those who want to give it a try.

There are two main types of printing inks used in today's newspapers. The best ink for this purpose is the water-based, hard-drying ink typically used in the Sunday color comics. The majority of regular newspaper pages, however, are printed with oil-based inks, which are not as good because, when flushing, the ink tends to float to the surface, leaving a ring around the toilet bowl. This ring can be cleaned, but it's a nuisance. The way to tell which type of ink is used is to rub your thumb vigorously over a black printed image. If your thumb stays clean, so will your toilet bowl. (So, without implying anything about journalism, color comics usually make better wrap material; however, some of my friends prefer the editorial page.) If newsprint printed with water-based ink is hard to find, rolls of clean newsprint, appropriately called "butt rolls" or "end rolls," can be purchased from most newspaper companies. You can also buy unprinted, cut newsprint in the form of "packing paper" from many moving companies.

Kraft paper (the kind used in brown paper bags) also works, but because it is stronger, it needs to be carefully soaked and broken up before flushing. You can use a smaller sheet of Kraft paper--half of a medium grocery bag usually does the trick.

Paper towels don't work nearly as well as newsprint. First, they soak through rapidly, making for messy folding. Second, the "wet strength" feature can make flushing difficult.

Disposal Systems

Newsprint and Kraft paper are basically wood fiber, which breaks down in a septic system just as toilet paper does. The pigment in black ink is basically carbon black, and its oil base is primarily mineral oil. So neither type of ink should be a problem for septic systems.

I sometimes store my unused newsprint sheets and toilet paper in a separate, gallon-sized plastic freezer bag. Storing both the "before" and "after" gallon bags against one of the bulkheads keeps them handy and lowers the chance of puncture.

Given that the wraps are stored in bags within a bag, I do not find odor to be problem in the kayak. However, odor at flushing time can be marginally reduced by pre-loading the sandwich-size bags with a teaspoon of dry holding-tank deodorant, available in biodegradable form at most marine-supply stores. (Here's an idea for scout troops or Junior Achievement clubs wishing to raise money: Sell "starter kits" consisting of newsprint and sandwich bags with deodorant and instructions, all packaged in the larger bag. It's a chance to make some money while teaching Leave No Trace techniques.)

In the Bag

To wrap things up, I'd like to emphasize that no one wants to kayak up to an island or wilderness shore only to discover it defaced with toilet paper and "cat holes." This LNT wrap method is a bit more inconvenient than paddlers may be used to when dealing with human waste, but as more of us take to the wilderness, it is one way to ensure that the places where we paddle will remain places that all of us can enjoy.

Jim Shaffer is a media consultant with experience in newspapers, television, radio, commercial printing, direct mail and Internet. From 1991-99, he was CEO of Maine-based Guy Gannett Communications, a diversified media holding company with operations in seven states. He lives in Cumberland, ME.