With the end of the school year encroaching upon us, we as a community look back over our triumphs (& tragedies) as well as our visions and goals for the future.
We've learned that the mobility of earth boxes prove beneficial...raised beds constructed in the wrong location...hardly so...Much like the housing market, what goes up...eventually comes down! With pride we viewed our raised beds, perfectly constructed...square foot planting model in place...seedlings just waiting to grow. Days turned into weeks...we waited...and waited...only to realize that the sun was shining down upon the sidewalk! Growing Connection "Take Two". Several Saturdays later & a SMALL group of volunteers, 22 beds de-constructed. Not all bad, we used the opportunity to employ a more "eco friendly" approach and replaced wood frames with clay roof tiles. Tiles are used in Cuba for gardens and are both durable and have no ill effect on the environment. (FYI)Most roofing companies are happy to donate surplus inventory! Seedlings replanted...away we go!
In an effort to establish a revenue stream (we operate without a budget...sound familiar, anyone?) an organic co-op was formed (via a business partnership)by a VME family. Each week 96 families pick up a bag of organic fruits & veggies. The cost...$20.00 per bag/per week. A 10% over-ride goes back into the Growing Connection, our sole revenue stream.
The Collier Fruit Growers Council has been very gererous. Two fruit tree/butterfly gardens have been planted in our central courtyards. A variety of native plants including banana, barbados cherry, pineapple, star fruit, avocado, etc. add to our efforts. Fruit trees are a wonderful way to keep the interest level high. This type of garden is low maintanence and yields tremendous results.
Our earth boxes have produced lettuce in abundance...a favorite feature item in our cafeteria. We have big plans for the system next year...including heavily planting herbs that a local culinary school has offered to purchase. A great way to develop a business model for our students!
So, as the Florida growing season winds down...we, too, are moving at a more relaxed pace. Our summer break will be filled with meeting dates to plan for 2009-2010 year. I will provide an entry of our vision....until then...
Tracey
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Monday, April 20, 2009
Veterans Memorial Elementary School Plants a Garden
Something wonderful is happening at Veterans Memorial School in Naples, Florida....students are eating veggies! My name is Tracey Vessillo and I am the parent chairperson for The Growing Connection program. It all started by asking a simple question, "How can VME enhance the quality of food served in the All Star Cafe?" A little thought, a lot of hard work and before we knew it, 22 earth boxes arrived...12 raised beds were planted (with help from the 4H extension office) and a fruit tree garden (compliments of the Collier Fruit Growers Council) filled the campus courtyards!
Grades K-5 participated in digging, planting, watering and weeding...oh, and let's not forget the best part...harvesting! Before long, the school was buzzing with excitement as the first salads using "home grown" ingredients were served. Imagine our satisfaction when children requested "seconds" and "thirds"!! Good bye junk food...hello nutrition...
We've accomplished a great deal (even featured on a front page article in the Tuesday, April 7th issue of "The Naples Daily News) but look ahead to the goals on the horizon. I look forward to sharing more details of our journey...until then..."grow your best!"
Tracey
Grades K-5 participated in digging, planting, watering and weeding...oh, and let's not forget the best part...harvesting! Before long, the school was buzzing with excitement as the first salads using "home grown" ingredients were served. Imagine our satisfaction when children requested "seconds" and "thirds"!! Good bye junk food...hello nutrition...
We've accomplished a great deal (even featured on a front page article in the Tuesday, April 7th issue of "The Naples Daily News) but look ahead to the goals on the horizon. I look forward to sharing more details of our journey...until then..."grow your best!"
Tracey
Friday, December 19, 2008
So, are you ready to become a wormologist?
Well, hopefully by now you have overcome your fears of keeping worms in your home or classroom and have decided to help the environment by worm composting. If you have not set up an indoor worm composting bin, please review the previous blog post to learn more about the process. For those of you who have constructed your own bin, here are some helpful tips that will assist you along the way.
Maintaining your worm bin:
Once you have your shredded, moistened newspaper as the bedding and your fruit/vegetable scraps as the food source, your worms should be living happily within the material. I always tell people if you notice worms on the walls or lid of the bin there is something wrong. The environment may be too wet, too dry, have too much food or not enough food. In these cases, follow the recommendations below:
Too wet – add more dry shredded newspaper
Too dry – use a water bottle to spritz the newspaper until it is as moist as a wrung out sponge
Too much food – excess food may cause high moisture levels and attract fruit flies. Always discard uneaten food after three weeks.
Only feed the worms what they can consume: ½ - 1 pound of scraps per day.
Too little food – Give your worms the required amount of fresh food scraps per day (at least ½ pound) or every other day (at least 1 pound). In optimum conditions worms can consume their weight per day. You started with 1 pound of worms so feed them, at the most, 1 pound per day.
Be sure to bury the food in different areas so the worms can easily find it. Always keep the lid of your bin on tightly. This will prevent fruit flies. Although, if you maintain adequate moisture and carefully follow the feeding instructions above; flies should not be a problem.
This is an example of what a bin might look like at the beginning add final stages.
Maintaining your worm bin:
Once you have your shredded, moistened newspaper as the bedding and your fruit/vegetable scraps as the food source, your worms should be living happily within the material. I always tell people if you notice worms on the walls or lid of the bin there is something wrong. The environment may be too wet, too dry, have too much food or not enough food. In these cases, follow the recommendations below:
Too wet – add more dry shredded newspaper
Too dry – use a water bottle to spritz the newspaper until it is as moist as a wrung out sponge
Too much food – excess food may cause high moisture levels and attract fruit flies. Always discard uneaten food after three weeks.
Only feed the worms what they can consume: ½ - 1 pound of scraps per day.
Too little food – Give your worms the required amount of fresh food scraps per day (at least ½ pound) or every other day (at least 1 pound). In optimum conditions worms can consume their weight per day. You started with 1 pound of worms so feed them, at the most, 1 pound per day.
Be sure to bury the food in different areas so the worms can easily find it. Always keep the lid of your bin on tightly. This will prevent fruit flies. Although, if you maintain adequate moisture and carefully follow the feeding instructions above; flies should not be a problem.
This is an example of what a bin might look like at the beginning add final stages.
A bin that has just been constructed:
A bin that is just about ready to harvest (about 3 months later):
Harvesting your compost (separating the worms from the finished product):
Once the food and newspaper are fully decomposed it is time to separate the worms from the compost. You will know it is time when you see only trace amounts of food and newspaper, and what remains is a dark, rich loose soil-like matter (see photo above). It is important to harvest the compost as soon as it is ready because it is most potent at this time. The finished compost also becomes toxic for the worms to eat because it is like eating their own feces. Another important reason to separate your worms before adding the compost to your garden is that you do not want to introduce an exotic species into your region. Redworms are from warmer climates and we would not want to release them where I am, in the Midwest of U.S.A. because they are not native to this area. You will also save yourself some money by reusing your worms in a new bin.
There are a number of ways in which you can harvest worm castings. I am going to share my top three favorite methods.
Sifting Method
The sifting method is probably the most successful if you have a good sifter. I built my sifter using ¼ inch screening (hardware cloth) and wood. I basically made a support frame with the wood and built that around a layer of hardware cloth. You can also buy sifters commercially. Once you have your sifter place it on top of an empty bucket, put one handful at a time on top of the sifter and gently rub the casting across the screen. The castings fall through the holes, while the worms stay on top of the screen. Every so often, empty the worms into a bucket as they pile up on the screen. Eventually you make your way through all of the finished compost and are left with a pile of worms. Make sure you rub gently so that you do not harm the worms by pressing them too hard against the screen.
Inch by Inch Method
This is probably the easiest and least time-consuming method. All you need to do is leave the lid off of your bin. As the light hits the top layer of the compost, the worms travel down because they are sensitive to light. You then simply scrape the top ½-1 inch layer of compost off. I can typically scrape off a one inch layer per day. The whole process may take up to two weeks and you are finally left with a layer of worms once you reach the bottom.
Divide and Sort Method
I call this the lazy-persons method because it does not require too much effort. The divide and sort method works by cutting off feeding for two weeks. This gets your worms nice and hungry. You then push all of the compost to one side of the bin. Then add fresh moistened bedding and fresh food to the empty side (see photo below). The worms will eventually migrate over to the fresh side. Once the migration is complete you can remove the compost side and put it to use. The worm composting process starts all over again on the other side. Migration can take up to a month so be patient when using this method.
Once the food and newspaper are fully decomposed it is time to separate the worms from the compost. You will know it is time when you see only trace amounts of food and newspaper, and what remains is a dark, rich loose soil-like matter (see photo above). It is important to harvest the compost as soon as it is ready because it is most potent at this time. The finished compost also becomes toxic for the worms to eat because it is like eating their own feces. Another important reason to separate your worms before adding the compost to your garden is that you do not want to introduce an exotic species into your region. Redworms are from warmer climates and we would not want to release them where I am, in the Midwest of U.S.A. because they are not native to this area. You will also save yourself some money by reusing your worms in a new bin.
There are a number of ways in which you can harvest worm castings. I am going to share my top three favorite methods.
Sifting Method
The sifting method is probably the most successful if you have a good sifter. I built my sifter using ¼ inch screening (hardware cloth) and wood. I basically made a support frame with the wood and built that around a layer of hardware cloth. You can also buy sifters commercially. Once you have your sifter place it on top of an empty bucket, put one handful at a time on top of the sifter and gently rub the casting across the screen. The castings fall through the holes, while the worms stay on top of the screen. Every so often, empty the worms into a bucket as they pile up on the screen. Eventually you make your way through all of the finished compost and are left with a pile of worms. Make sure you rub gently so that you do not harm the worms by pressing them too hard against the screen.
Inch by Inch Method
This is probably the easiest and least time-consuming method. All you need to do is leave the lid off of your bin. As the light hits the top layer of the compost, the worms travel down because they are sensitive to light. You then simply scrape the top ½-1 inch layer of compost off. I can typically scrape off a one inch layer per day. The whole process may take up to two weeks and you are finally left with a layer of worms once you reach the bottom.
Divide and Sort Method
I call this the lazy-persons method because it does not require too much effort. The divide and sort method works by cutting off feeding for two weeks. This gets your worms nice and hungry. You then push all of the compost to one side of the bin. Then add fresh moistened bedding and fresh food to the empty side (see photo below). The worms will eventually migrate over to the fresh side. Once the migration is complete you can remove the compost side and put it to use. The worm composting process starts all over again on the other side. Migration can take up to a month so be patient when using this method.
This just about sums up the worm composting experience and my blog postings. Once you get the hang of it, it is a cinch. I was not able to cover every detail on these postings so please feel free to contact me for more details.
Here's to saving the Earth on step at a time!
Nancy Kreith
University of Illinois Extension
nkreith@gmail.com
Learn more at: http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/worms
Here's to saving the Earth on step at a time!
Nancy Kreith
University of Illinois Extension
nkreith@gmail.com
Learn more at: http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/worms
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Wonderful World of Worms
Hey everybody! December is worm composting month and this is one of the best times of the year to start planning your indoor worm composting operation. Vermi-composting, also known as, worm composting, is the art and science of using worms to break down waste (such as, food scraps/newspaper) into useful compost (soil amendment). Vermi-composting is much easier to maintain than your typical outdoor compost bin system.
In a worm composting bin, the worms do the work for you. They rapidly eat the food waste, mainly fruit and vegetable peelings, and turn the materials for you. I start out with a ten gallon size, dark container with lid. I drill about 50 -1/8” holes into the lid for air circulation. Next, I moisten shredded newspaper so it feels like their home - soft, airy, a little wet, and comfortable. Then, I add 1 pound of red-wigglers (1000 worms) and a handful of earth (soil). The soil's particles and microorganisms help pull food through the worm’s gizzard.
In a worm composting bin, the worms do the work for you. They rapidly eat the food waste, mainly fruit and vegetable peelings, and turn the materials for you. I start out with a ten gallon size, dark container with lid. I drill about 50 -1/8” holes into the lid for air circulation. Next, I moisten shredded newspaper so it feels like their home - soft, airy, a little wet, and comfortable. Then, I add 1 pound of red-wigglers (1000 worms) and a handful of earth (soil). The soil's particles and microorganisms help pull food through the worm’s gizzard.
TIP: The moisture level of the newspaper should be like wrung out sponge. You can use a paper shredder to shred the newspaper or just use your hands to tear the newspaper into ½ inch strips. Tear with the grain of the paper. DO NOT use glossy paper. The worms cannot digest the glossy-wax coating.
The amazing thing about composting worms is that they not only use the newspaper and soil for their bedding, but they eat it too! You might have to add newspaper every once in a while. The real key to keeping your worms happy is feeding them a variety of raw kitchen waste regularly. A list of proper food is posted below. I like to feed my worms 1 pound of waste every other day.
DO FEED
fruit peelings
vegetable peelings
raw oatmeal and cereals
cornmeal
crushed egg shells
coffee grounds with the filter
tea bags
newspaper
DON'T FEED
animal bones
meat, fish and poultry
cheese
butter
salad dressing
mayonnaise
glossy colored paper
greasy foods
Be sure to stay tuned for worm bin trouble shooting and harvesting methods.
For a complete step by step guide on how to make your own bin please visit: http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/worms
If you have additional questions, please feel free to reach me at nkreith@gmail.com
Happy Composting!
Nancy Kreith
DO FEED
fruit peelings
vegetable peelings
raw oatmeal and cereals
cornmeal
crushed egg shells
coffee grounds with the filter
tea bags
newspaper
DON'T FEED
animal bones
meat, fish and poultry
cheese
butter
salad dressing
mayonnaise
glossy colored paper
greasy foods
Be sure to stay tuned for worm bin trouble shooting and harvesting methods.
For a complete step by step guide on how to make your own bin please visit: http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/worms
If you have additional questions, please feel free to reach me at nkreith@gmail.com
Happy Composting!
Nancy Kreith
Friday, November 21, 2008
Tools for communication: Skype
First of all, I’d like to express my thankfulness for allowing me to collaborate with this blog. I work for Asociación Familia Padre Fabretto (
Fabretto centers are located mostly in rural or semi-rural areas; therefore, having them connected to the Internet has been very useful for managing operations as well as providing a venue for having access to educational resources such as information on school gardens, which have been in Fabretto’s programs for some years now. Thanks to The Growing Connection, FAO, and other organizations, our centers have been able to extend their support to nearby public schools, as well, by sharing their experiences on school gardens, and its impact on students on issues related to food security. Moreover, one of my personal satisfactions has been seeing students documenting their experiences, first through their teachers and facilitators, and later through their own discovery and use of technology. As it has been seen in the past years, Internet has revolutionized our ways to communicate with easier, faster, and richer experiences. Nowadays, there are many tools available that help us stay in touch and learn from people, services, or machines: communication tools (Skype, Yahoo Messenger, MSN Messenger or Windows Live Messenger), social tools (Facebook, MySpace, etc), Blogs/content creation (like this one), photo sharing (Flicker, Picasa, etc.), Wikipedia. Even more, "cloud computing" is allowing users to use services through the Internet, and reduce their dependence on software installed on a personal computer. For example, this document was created through the Word Processor that comes with Google Apps, free, and totally online. In this context, Skype has been a very useful tool for our students and teachers to communicate among them. I'd like to share with you our experience with Skype in
First, for those of you that are unfamiliar with Skype, let me share with you a little bit about it. Skype is one of the communications tools (Yahoo Messenger, etc.) that are useful for chatting, talking, making phone calls, exchanging messages, call/chat conferencing, etc. with people who also use the same program. It is relatively easy to locate people by name, or email address. Moreover, Skype can be extended with other shared applications such as games, white-board sharing, etc.
You may download Skype from here. If you are a non-Windows user, please notice that on the right side of the screen, you will be able to download Skype versions for Mac, Linux, etc. After you have downloaded Skype, double click on the file you downloaded and proceed with its installation. It is a pretty straight forward process, until you are asked to register, and create a user name, password, contact email, etc. After this process has been completed, you may proceed to log in to the network and add your contacts. In general, if you have any questions about how to use Skype, please go to http://www.skype.com/help/guides/ for Skype’s online help.
Please be aware that the Internet can be a dangerous place, therefore, pay close attention to the recommendations Skype and other sites make about security related issues:
- Skype recommended information on security: http://share.skype.com/sites/security/
- Online security: http://www.getsafeonline.org/
- Security on a personal computer: http://www.cert.org/homeusers/HomeComputerSecurity/
- Security on Skype: http://www.skype.com/security/security/
One special section is the one about setting your Skype privacy levels. I would recommend that you only accept chats or calls from people in your “contacts” list. In addition, be aware that if you set your mode to SkypeMe, then, you privacy settings will be disabled, and anyone will be able to call you or chat with you, without your express permission. Not to worry you, only list personal information in you profile [File, Profile] that you feel comfortable sharing with other people in Internet. Moreover, you do not even have to fill in your profile.
Chatting is one of the ways to communicate with people by opening a new Window where the chat takes place. One of the nice features of chatting in Skype is that one may leave messages for “off-line” contacts, or retrieve a history of chats that have occurred… this can be useful for follow up conversations, or just to take notes about what was discussed during the chat. In addition, you may also add other contacts to your chat, and initiate a chat conference with more than one party.
With Skype, you can also call another Skype user, for free, or make calls to a conventional land-line or mobile phone, provided that you have bought time [click on Account, Buy Skype Credit]. Similarly to chatting, you may invite other contacts while having a conversation with somebody, and begin a conference (maximum of 9 concurrent participants). In addition, besides sharing chat and voice, if you, or your contacts, happen to have a Webcams or a similar device, you may also see each other through video in your Skype session. It is important to point out that as you may add more participants to your conferences, you may also send them contact information, files, or even dismiss or re-invite that person if his/her connection gets lost.
I invite you to explore Skype’s additional features. This can be seen by clicking on [Tools, More, Get Extras] in the Skype menu ( ). A couple of tools that I found useful were the SketchPad and the WhiteBoard Sharing, available under the Collaboration tab section, which can be useful to discuss concepts, visually. For example, I was able to discuss concepts using these tools with a colleague, some 300 km away. As words were not enough to explain an idea, through this visual aid, we were able to share our own vision of what would be a particular solution to a problem then.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Water for Life and Food by Mahmood Ahmad
Water for Life and Food
by Dr. Mahmood Ahmad, FAO Consultant
1. Characteristics of water
Water is essential, meaning that there is no life without water, no economic production, no environment. The amount of water available is limited by the amount of water that circulates through the atmosphere on an annual basis. All water stems from rainfall, it flows under gravity and if we don't capture it it is lost. The annual water cycle from rainfall to runoff is a complex system where several processes (infiltration, surface runoff, recharge, seepage, re-infiltration, moisture recycling) are interconnected and interdependent with only one direction of flow: downstream. Water is difficult to transport, we transport the produce instead: grains, fruits, vegetable, textile products etc.; commodities that house more than 1,000 times their weight in virtual water - the water required to produce it.
2. Facts on Availability and Use
We need 50 liters of water per day for domestic use with breakdown as follows, 5 liters for drinking, 20 liters for sanitation, 15 liters for bathing, and 10 liters for cooking. We use a whopping figure of 1500 liters for food we eat every day. It is generally a vital and precious resource, but 1 billion rural dwellers still do not have access to clean water (requires efforts to fetch). The importance of fresh water can be judged from the fact that it is only 2.5% of available water, if all the earth’s water were to fit in a gallon jug (4 liters), the available fresh water would be just over 1 tablespoon.
3. The Main Issues
Water is one of the most limiting resources for economic development in the arid environments of the countries around the globe. The pressure exerted by economic and demographic process on the national resource base is a serious concern. In The 20th Century, the population increased by three-fold, where as water demand grew by six-fold, indicating the decline in per capita availability. Water is already being used at maximum capacity in most of the countries implying that the supply is limited but demand is increasing for enhancing irrigation; provision of drinking water; recharging of groundwater supplies and wetlands; and flushing away of municipal and industrial wastes. Therefore, water must be seen in the context of:
· Water for Agriculture;
· Water for People; and
· Water for Nature.
All the three above-mentioned users’ of water contribute significantly in sustained economic growth and meeting food security needs.
However, this quantum increase in demand is bringing water crisis in several regions, most notably in the Middle East and North Africa, but also in an increasingly large number of countries worldwide. Water scarcity varies from region to region; Middle East and South East Asia are very poor in per capita water availability. Per capita availability of water in the North America region is over 10000 cubic meters and on other extreme its only 260 cubic meters in the case of Jordan. The global average was 12000 cubic meters in year 1950 and is projected to decline to 4500 cubic meters in the year 2050. The availability varies considerably over time and space.
The availability of fresh water is not only getting scarce but its quality is also decreasing. Water quality issues of safe drinking water, water logging and salinity, sedimentation, sea water intrusions and waste water use are serious issues. These environmental concerns need to be mainstreamed into water resources development planning and management. In most countries regulation exists to address the problems but their implementation is week. At the same time public awareness campaign on a war footing is needed to address environmental issues related to water use. If we don’t address these issues now, we are simply shifting the problems to our future generation with much higher cost to pay.
Most countries facing erratic rainfall patterns have already developed or are developing many of their economically usable available water sources. Without efficient control and proper water management, most of those countries will find difficult to provide water for life and food. These countries are not using water efficiently, even where water is scarce, the efficiency of the use of irrigation and drinking water is very low. In the case of irrigation subsector, almost half of the water supplied for irrigation never actually gets to the field. This is due to leakage, poor selection of water supply system, low efficiency, and often growing crops that consume too much water. In the case of domestic supply of water, at least one-third of the drinking water for towns and villages leaks out through the network or wasteful misuse, thus wasting billions of dollars each year. We over irrigate when watering our lawns or wash cars. The poor section of population who do not have access to piped water, get less water and pay the most. The case for industrial use is not any different; many industries use and lower the quality of water far in excess of their needs. Here again, one sees defects in recycling, leakage, loss, and inefficient production processes. In brief water is being wasted at all levels of use and we need make productive use of each drop,
4. The Needed Action
We need to save water in our farms, gardens, homes and at all levels, storage, conveyances and distributional and come up with innovative ideas to produce more per drop of water- meaning enhancing water productivity. A list of intervention is proposed and further ideas would be consolidated through our deliberations.
by Dr. Mahmood Ahmad, FAO Consultant
1. Characteristics of water
Water is essential, meaning that there is no life without water, no economic production, no environment. The amount of water available is limited by the amount of water that circulates through the atmosphere on an annual basis. All water stems from rainfall, it flows under gravity and if we don't capture it it is lost. The annual water cycle from rainfall to runoff is a complex system where several processes (infiltration, surface runoff, recharge, seepage, re-infiltration, moisture recycling) are interconnected and interdependent with only one direction of flow: downstream. Water is difficult to transport, we transport the produce instead: grains, fruits, vegetable, textile products etc.; commodities that house more than 1,000 times their weight in virtual water - the water required to produce it.
2. Facts on Availability and Use
We need 50 liters of water per day for domestic use with breakdown as follows, 5 liters for drinking, 20 liters for sanitation, 15 liters for bathing, and 10 liters for cooking. We use a whopping figure of 1500 liters for food we eat every day. It is generally a vital and precious resource, but 1 billion rural dwellers still do not have access to clean water (requires efforts to fetch). The importance of fresh water can be judged from the fact that it is only 2.5% of available water, if all the earth’s water were to fit in a gallon jug (4 liters), the available fresh water would be just over 1 tablespoon.
3. The Main Issues
Water is one of the most limiting resources for economic development in the arid environments of the countries around the globe. The pressure exerted by economic and demographic process on the national resource base is a serious concern. In The 20th Century, the population increased by three-fold, where as water demand grew by six-fold, indicating the decline in per capita availability. Water is already being used at maximum capacity in most of the countries implying that the supply is limited but demand is increasing for enhancing irrigation; provision of drinking water; recharging of groundwater supplies and wetlands; and flushing away of municipal and industrial wastes. Therefore, water must be seen in the context of:
· Water for Agriculture;
· Water for People; and
· Water for Nature.
All the three above-mentioned users’ of water contribute significantly in sustained economic growth and meeting food security needs.
However, this quantum increase in demand is bringing water crisis in several regions, most notably in the Middle East and North Africa, but also in an increasingly large number of countries worldwide. Water scarcity varies from region to region; Middle East and South East Asia are very poor in per capita water availability. Per capita availability of water in the North America region is over 10000 cubic meters and on other extreme its only 260 cubic meters in the case of Jordan. The global average was 12000 cubic meters in year 1950 and is projected to decline to 4500 cubic meters in the year 2050. The availability varies considerably over time and space.
The availability of fresh water is not only getting scarce but its quality is also decreasing. Water quality issues of safe drinking water, water logging and salinity, sedimentation, sea water intrusions and waste water use are serious issues. These environmental concerns need to be mainstreamed into water resources development planning and management. In most countries regulation exists to address the problems but their implementation is week. At the same time public awareness campaign on a war footing is needed to address environmental issues related to water use. If we don’t address these issues now, we are simply shifting the problems to our future generation with much higher cost to pay.
Most countries facing erratic rainfall patterns have already developed or are developing many of their economically usable available water sources. Without efficient control and proper water management, most of those countries will find difficult to provide water for life and food. These countries are not using water efficiently, even where water is scarce, the efficiency of the use of irrigation and drinking water is very low. In the case of irrigation subsector, almost half of the water supplied for irrigation never actually gets to the field. This is due to leakage, poor selection of water supply system, low efficiency, and often growing crops that consume too much water. In the case of domestic supply of water, at least one-third of the drinking water for towns and villages leaks out through the network or wasteful misuse, thus wasting billions of dollars each year. We over irrigate when watering our lawns or wash cars. The poor section of population who do not have access to piped water, get less water and pay the most. The case for industrial use is not any different; many industries use and lower the quality of water far in excess of their needs. Here again, one sees defects in recycling, leakage, loss, and inefficient production processes. In brief water is being wasted at all levels of use and we need make productive use of each drop,
4. The Needed Action
We need to save water in our farms, gardens, homes and at all levels, storage, conveyances and distributional and come up with innovative ideas to produce more per drop of water- meaning enhancing water productivity. A list of intervention is proposed and further ideas would be consolidated through our deliberations.
4.1 Upgrade and Develop Available Technologies suitable to local conditions and culture.
Water management–friendly design of surface irrigation systems
Low-cost water harvesting technology
Low-cost water conservation methods in rainfed agriculture
Low-cost pumping and pressurized irrigation systems
Efficient sprinklers to apply water more uniformly
Low-energy, precision application sprinklers to cut evaporation and wind-drift losses
Membrane-covered canals
Adapting drip irrigation to smallholder conditions
Recycling drainage and tail water
Assessment and optimization of irrigation multifunctional
4.2 Use Innovative Technologies
A number of innovative technologies are available that enhance water productivity and save water. The capture of rainwater from roofs provides a valuable source of water for residential or commercial purposes. As a guide, for every 1 inch of rainfall that falls on 1,000 sqf of roof area you can expect to collect approximately 600 gallons of rainwater.
Recent surge in energy cost are making small farming un profitable in many developing countries, a simple and inexpensive human-powered pumps are being used by small-scale farmers in many Asian and African countries. Resource conservation technology such as land leveling, zero tillage and raised bed planting are some of intervention that not only enhances farm productivity but also saves water.
The FAO driven Growing Connection (TGC) programme is supporting schools, communities and other stakeholders in growing fresh nutritious vegetables with the highly flexible and adaptable environments. From villages in Ghana to Nicaragua, to downtown neighborhoods in the USA, participants are using Earth Box that Optimize your produce, maximize yield and promote technology that produces more crops per drop. Simple yet effective, Earth Box system uses 80% less water than an in-ground, drip irrigation system. The Earth Box vastly increases the yield per area over a conventional garden – with less fertilizer & much less water.
Monday, September 29, 2008
FOOD AND NUTRITIONAL SECURITY by Odette Sanabria Solchaga
The Following is translated from the expert post of Odette Sanabria Solchaga from our Blog de Expertos:
http://tgcblogdevisitantes.blogspot.com/
FOOD AND NUTRITIONAL SECURITY: A STRATEGY FOR THE HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
In recent years, many countries have been prompted to address food and nutritional security to combat poverty and promote human development. 815 million people live without enough food and are malnurished. 777 million are in developing countries, 27 million are in transition countries and 11 million are in developed countries.
Food and Nutritional Security as a strategy for social and economic development aids in the production of food to ensure adequate health and nutrition in developing countries. It is a strategy that is driving many countries in Latin America, mandated by the presidents of the Central American countries and is supported by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the World Health Organization, The Institute of Nutrition or Central America and Panama (INCAP) and many more.
It is extremely important to understand that Food and Nutritional Security is achievable when people understand the amount and quality of nutrients that is necessary for good individual and community health. When people organize themselves around this issue they promote human development and social and economic sustainability.
Food and nutritional insecurity occurs when the diets of people do not include this minimal amount of quality nutrients. The principle causes of food and nutritional insecurity that affects millions of people are:
Poverty, one of the principle problems facing society
Low levels of food production
Low per capita income and insufficient purchasing power
High dependence on importing basic foods
High prevalence of malnutrition and illnesses
Inadequate distribution and utilization of food in the home
High incident of effects from climate change
High population growth rate
Food and Nutritional Security occurs when nutritional requirements for individuals and groups is satisfactorily achieved. When a person is malnourished they have a reduced capacity to produce and a lower potential for personal development. Malnutrition in the population causes underdevelopment and increases inequality and poverty.
As a result of all of these situations, the education, health and agricultural sectors are putting forth efforts to unite everyone to achieve food and nutritional security.
http://tgcblogdevisitantes.blogspot.com/
FOOD AND NUTRITIONAL SECURITY: A STRATEGY FOR THE HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
In recent years, many countries have been prompted to address food and nutritional security to combat poverty and promote human development. 815 million people live without enough food and are malnurished. 777 million are in developing countries, 27 million are in transition countries and 11 million are in developed countries.
Food and Nutritional Security as a strategy for social and economic development aids in the production of food to ensure adequate health and nutrition in developing countries. It is a strategy that is driving many countries in Latin America, mandated by the presidents of the Central American countries and is supported by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the World Health Organization, The Institute of Nutrition or Central America and Panama (INCAP) and many more.
It is extremely important to understand that Food and Nutritional Security is achievable when people understand the amount and quality of nutrients that is necessary for good individual and community health. When people organize themselves around this issue they promote human development and social and economic sustainability.
Food and nutritional insecurity occurs when the diets of people do not include this minimal amount of quality nutrients. The principle causes of food and nutritional insecurity that affects millions of people are:
Poverty, one of the principle problems facing society
Low levels of food production
Low per capita income and insufficient purchasing power
High dependence on importing basic foods
High prevalence of malnutrition and illnesses
Inadequate distribution and utilization of food in the home
High incident of effects from climate change
High population growth rate
Food and Nutritional Security occurs when nutritional requirements for individuals and groups is satisfactorily achieved. When a person is malnourished they have a reduced capacity to produce and a lower potential for personal development. Malnutrition in the population causes underdevelopment and increases inequality and poverty.
As a result of all of these situations, the education, health and agricultural sectors are putting forth efforts to unite everyone to achieve food and nutritional security.
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