From Canada, to Mexico to Dubai, for centuries humans have been building islands. The major limitation in the construction of islands is that they can only be built in shallow water due to the expense and resource intensiveness of construction. However, this is a limitation that may soon be history with the development of a new deep water platform.

Developed by Versabuoy International the deep water platform uses articulating spars that can absorb intense waves making large scale development safer and more feasible. The innovation is touted as bringing deep water land mass creation closer to fruition. What this means for potential island owners is that it is now possible to create man made islands in deep ocean waters. With nearly 71% of the earths landmass located in deep water, the new deep water platform opens up the oceans to development that was not possible even just a few years ago. Truly the depths of the oceans are a new frontier for island lovers

About Composting Toilets

On many remote islands septic tanks or municipal sewage treatment is not available. As a result many island owners purchase composting toilets to manage human waste. A composting toilet is “a system that converts human waste into fertilizer or soil through the natural breakdown of organic matter into its essential minerals.” The process of converting human waste into safe and useable compost material can take anywhere between 3 months to a few years to complete depending on factors such as climate and temperature.

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How Septic Systems Work

A septic system, is a small scale sewage treatment system common in places such as on private islands where is not possible to have a connection to the main sewage pipes of a municipality. Traditionally a septic tank is a large, concrete or steel tank that is buried outside of the home.

Today the design of the tank usually incorporates two chambers which are separated by a dividing wall and has openings midway between the floor and ceiling of the tank. Wastewater enters the first chamber of the tank allowing solids to either float to the top in the form of scum or sink to the bottom in the form of sludge. The sludge is broken down via anaerobic bacteria (bacteria that exist without oxygen. The scum and other liquid components flow through the dividing wall into the second chamber where further settlement takes place.

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