The Southwest Florida Water Management District’s water conservation restroom trailer will make its Pasco County debut when it appears at the 3rd Annual Pasco County Extension Service Open House and Plant Sale. The event is being held October 23 at the Pasco County Fairgrounds in Dade City.
This popular and practical water conservation restroom trailer has appeared at more than half a dozen community festivals within the District’s Pinellas-Anclote River and Hillsborough River basins, which fund the project. This is the third year the project is being funded.
The Pinellas-Anclote River Basin includes all of Pinellas County and a portion of Pasco County. The Hillsborough River Basin includes portions of Hillsborough, Pasco and Polk counties.
The trailer features air conditioning, six private half baths with water conservation features, running water, lights, mirrors and a bathroom attendant who will keep the stalls clean and stocked.
Although the trailer is an alternative to some bathrooms found at large events, these bathrooms aren’t just about convenience. A water filtration and
circulation system for the toilets makes water conservation the main focus.
This re-circulation system allows for the water used in the sinks to go down the drains and circulate back to the toilets’ tanks. Once flushed, the toilet water is filtered and chemically treated then returned to the toilets’ tanks. Although state-of-the-art for this event, it’s a system similar to those currently used on airplanes.
By using this filtration system, the water conservation restroom trailer saves
more water than a standard restroom trailer. The tank of a regular restroom trailer has to be pumped out after 750 to 800 uses; a water conservation restroom trailer tank doesn’t have to be serviced until approximately 7,000 uses.
In addition to providing an interactive opportunity for visitors to experience water conservation in action, the trailer also features water conservation displays and materials, including the District’s “12 Simple Ways to Save Water” publication and radio campaign messages. The messages seen and heard on and in the trailer also reinforce the conservation messages of the District’s current media campaign, “Florida’s Water, It’s Worth Saving.”
Water conservation information is also available on the District’s web site atwww.WaterMatters.org.