[chrisser]

We have Amish here in Ohio as well in several counties not too far from Cleveland. Nice people. Bit quirky, but once upon a time in this country, you had the right to be quirky and still be left alone.

Amish don't use electricity or mechanical power - just horses and other animals. My guess is that the average Amish farm generates several times more animal waste than human, and there certainly isn't any sort of sewage system for that.

Now that said, since septic systems (at least the anaerobic ones) don't require any mechanics, it would seem that the Amish could be convinced to put in slightly more effective systems for human waste treatment without compromising their beliefs. People who work the land tend to have more respect for it. I suspect there is some justification in wanting to keep human waste out of the runoff water, but those who are advocating it likely chose the blunt instrument of government coersion over the more effective and efficient instruments of education and cooperation.

Septic systems aren't all that complicated or difficult to install and most of the expense seems to be in the excavation - something that the Amish likely could do cheaply with their community traditions (think barn-raising). I'd bet there's a viable solution that every reasonable person in the county could live with that doesn't involve fining people for doing what they've been doing for generations.

[muawiyah]

It's been an uphill battle to get the Amish to put an outhouse over the slit-trench.

They could easily revert.

[Tallguy]

Now that said, since septic systems (at least the anaerobic ones) don't require any mechanics, it would seem that the Amish could be convinced to put in slightly more effective systems for human waste treatment without compromising their beliefs. People who work the land tend to have more respect for it. I suspect there is some justification in wanting to keep human waste out of the runoff water, but those who are advocating it likely chose the blunt instrument of government coersion over the more effective and efficient instruments of education and cooperation.

If the community forces the issue the Amish will 'adjust'. They always do.

They do refrigerate their raw milk on-site until the dairy truck pumps them out. They use diesel generators to create their own electricity for this. So you see the prohibition is not "no electricity", but has become "no utilities". Al Gore would love this.

Another 'adjustment' is the orange triangles & flashers on the backs of their black buggies. Lead Acid batteries on a horse-drawn buggie? Where are they recharging those? Those clandestine diesel generators I expect.

[ontap]

All the anaerobic systems I’m familiar with require an air compressor and a pump.

[eastforker]

To have a septic tank system running water is needed. Last time I checked, outhouses don’t have that.

[eastforker]

To have a septic tank system running water is needed. Last time I checked, outhouses don’t have that.