Golden power

For the last three years, Glastonbury (and a few other) festival-goers have contributed to renewable electricity generation via their excreta. Bristol BioEnergy Centre's Microbial Fuel Cells were installed under urinals and provided electrical power for lighting. An article by BBiC's Jonathan Winfield and Ioannis Ieropoulos in the CAT magazine Clean Slate earlier this year looks forward to how the technology may develop. It concludes:

It is our hope that it won't be too long before microbial fuel cells are a part of our lives. Perhaps we'll have charging ports in our toilets? So back to you, the reader's bladder movements. Perhaps you're ready to go now? When you do, just remember that what you're flushing down the pan could one day be a means for lighting your yard or charging your phone.