It's great that three local PTAs will start using compostable products for their events now, thanks for passing the info along! And kudos to you for following up with the MP City Council as well. Too bad there's nothing in the pipeline that will work for people sooner than 2011. If individual homeowners aren't able to build their own compost pile, how about a neighborhood pile? Clearly this type of solution works only if there's mutual property that everyone can agree to use for this purpose and to share the work of maintaining the pile. Of course the whole community would then derive the benefits of all the great soil to use in their gardens too. But such an effort clearly takes a few committed individuals to get off the ground. :-)

Since I arranged for Allied Waste to pick up the school's compost materials only--and don't live in the MP area myself--I did not explore whether a person could drop off compost to their facility, but that might be worth exploring as well.

Ellen

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I'm not yet ready for the Navy shower either but I find it OK to reduce the flow rate during parts of my shower as long as I can turn it back up for other parts.

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I know little about this topic personally, but found the following post (edited):

Setting a precedent in water conservation and keeping water local, California's first permitted residential graywater system with a constructed wetland passed inspection on January 24.
The residents of the EcoHouse in Berkeley will save between 18,000 to 27,000 gallons of water each year by using wastewater instead of city-supplied drinking water to irrigate their garden.

Home graywater systems and municipal treatment wetlands already exist in California, but this design combines both systems in a dense residential area.

Of all the water on Earth only 0.007% is readily accessible for direct human use. Fresh water is only becoming more precious due to over-extraction, climate change, and pollution.
"Graywater" refers to water drained from sinks, showers, tubs and washing machines. The EcoHouse design features an EPA approved constructed wetland that uses gravel and wetland plants with deep root systems to treat the graywater before it irrigates the garden. The system does not invite mosquitoes because water always remains below the surface. During the rainy months a flip of a switch directs graywater back to the city sewer.

"Meeting state and city codes can make it intimidating for the average homeowner to use graywater safely," says EcoHouse co-founder Babak Jacinto Tondre. "We have created a template that can save a lot of money and consulting time," he says.

The EcoHouse plans to help guide the public through the permit process through presentations and tours of the system. It's part of the project's mission of "making ecological ways of living accessible and affordable to people of all ages, ethnicities, and income levels."
Graywater systems can be low cost, save money and turn otherwise wasted water into a beautiful garden.
To learn more about the EcoHouse graywater system or to schedule an EcoHouse tour, contact ecohouse@ecologycenter or call 510-548-2220 ext. 224

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