Right around the time a barrel of oil was around $150 USD I stumbled upon an article from an "expert" saying that the solution to resolve hunger was to give more money to poor countries in order to buy more tractors and more agrochemicals! So wrong! Then a thought popped into mind: " Do something! No matter what! Anything is better than nothing! ". Mission: increasing awareness of hydroponics and aquaponics as key tools in fighting hunger around the world.
Roger Pilon, Editor
Hello everyone! How I got into hydroponics is a long story...let's just say that it involves a lot of tedious farm work as a child, unsuccessful 'dirt' gardens of my own and a near electrocution from a semi-submersible hydroponic pump. I've learned that hydroponic gardening is the only way to garden for me and I've been working at it for several years now. I've built ebb/flow, nft, Mittleider, wick and passive systems and I'm always on the lookout for the easiest and most efficient means of hydroponic gardening...If you have questions, I would be more than happy to answer them...
A three year UNESCO study with 400 professional contributors concludes that; -- Change agricultural policy now to avoid a global social explosion in reaction to rising food prices - Salvatore Arico, UNESCO spokesperson:
This month there were "uprising/riots" in 33 countries from Italy to Haiti to Indonesia. Presidents Zoellick at the World Bank and Bush at the White House have suggested;
- send emergency rations --!
Who considers that such a one-time action is appropriate?
The Economist [April 19] concludes
"Ideally, a big part of the supply response would come from the World's 450 million small-holders in developing countries."
My perspective suggests another way.
Urban Agriculture is a core solution to the crisis.
1. Space;
a. 21st Century UrbAg technology can produce 6 to 12 times as much per acre as 20th century rural agriculture.
2. Water:
a. 21st Century UrbAg irrigation methods can produce ten times as much per gallon as 20th century rural agriculture, and it reuses water.
3. Economics:
a. UrbAg builds stable community economies which provide a foundation for city, state and national economies.
What caused the surge in food prices?
1. Space: a. Rural agricultural land is ending its most productive lifespan [1970 to 2000] in too many places. Long term drought form Australia to Sudan, western China and SW USA has cut production from one third to zero, place to place. Since 2000 population growth has been faster than agricultural productivity or product
2. Water: Three factors seem to dominate the issue:
a) Loss of snow as a storage mode,
b) Obsolete and failing irrigation systems,
c) Shrinking surface and pumped out ground water reservoirs. Hope is being placed on desalinization of ocean water. This is fine for the Persian Gulf but does not seem feasible for Africa.
3. Economics: The tumble of the US dollar from being the foundation of the global economy has opened the door to the new global commodity economy. Core commodities today are oil, weapons, and food. Guess who is manipulating global food prices. It's not likely to be the consumer, is it?
The Economist concludes: -- , more febrile behavior seems to be influencing markets - rumors of panic buying by - importers, (and) hedge funds looking for new markets."
CONCLUSION; To Dos
1. Establish and support food systems within 50 to 100 miles of small and large urban places [Continuous Productive Urban Landscapes, CPULs]. The 2008 crisis is more dominated by urban markets than ever before in history.
2. Restore, do not deplete, ground water. Retire obsolete, wasteful irrigation systems [year by year] and replace them with small efficient systems. Reuse all water again and again.
3. Build community, municipal and state economies from the bottom up, with food at the core. And step-by-step take over from the failed global Agri-business industry.
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