[greenyes] Integrated Farming Systems a way of recycling organics on site, producing decentralized energy, and improving people's lives

[Mary Appelhof <mappelho@no.address>]

From: Mary Appelhof

http://www.wormwoman.com

Professor George C. Chan, has given me permission to share his paper, 
Integrated Farming Systems through my free monthly newsletter 
available at the above address. 

I met George last year at Picuris Pueblo, nearly 7000 feet high in 
the mountains about 30 miles south of Taos, New Mexico. Now retired, 
George was born and worked in the  island state of Mauritius, having 
graduated as a civil engineer from the Imperial College of London. He 
spent five years in China learning about and working with their 
extensive fish farming systems. He is totally committed to designing 
systems that will bring to people in poverty lives that have good, 
nutritious food, diversity in their work, and freedom from the 
economic stress that reliance on fossil fuels for fertilizer, heat, 
and energy require. George hopes to help the people of Picuris solve 
their problem of a sewage lagoon near-to-capacity above the Rio 
Pueblo by incorporating each element in his integrated farming 
system.  This project will be a model that can be emulated all over 
the world, giving hope and meaning to millions who deserve the 
dignity that satisfying, productive lives can give. And it will be 
beautifully sustainable.

George Chan's systems run human wastes and animal manure through a 
biodigester that produces biogas (methane) for energy. The effluent 
moves through shallow basins, then oxidation basis where millions of 
microorganisms and plankton put oxygen back into the water. Six to 
eight species of fish live in deep ponds, feeding off the plankton 
and the grasses around the edges of the ponds. The fish more fully 
incorporate the nutrients in the system and provide a protein food 
source. Mushrooms and earthworms grow on sludge substrates, producing 
higher quality feeds, mushrooms for the people, earthworms for 
livestock and fish. The nutrient-rich water is used to irrigate 
adjacent lands for higher quality crops. Eventually the system 
becomes so efficient at producing crops and products with few 
external inputs that not having enough wastes becomes a limiting 
factor. Instead of being concerned about wastes polluting the land, 
George says, "I want your waste."  Let him tell you about Integrated 
Farming Systems in his own words.

The first of three installments of his paper appears in my WormEzine 
(Issue 2-8, September 2003) downloadable as a PDF file from my 
website at http://www.wormwoman.com/acatalog/wormezine.html 

You are welcome to subscribe to this free newsletter by following the 
WormEzine link at http://www.wormwoman.com/acatalog/index.html

Mary Appelhof



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Mary Appelhof, Author of "Worms Eat My Garbage"
Flowerfield Enterprises,10332 Shaver Road,Kalamazoo, MI 49024 USA
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