20100913
Sola Roof Norway - Norway leads our EU collaboration.
In a world that is now gripped by the failure of conventional agriculture/forestry to provide sustainable life support resources to the rapidly expanding human population, we propose an alternative, and more technological answer that is also a remedy or antidote that can reverse environmental damage and reduce stress on ecological systems.
The land has always been the source of food, water, materials and fuel, however at this time - due to climate change and other factors - the “carrying capacity” of the land is at its limits and shows signs of eco-system collapse. The horticulture industry is the alternative answer and the greenhouse now new and improved with Sola Roof that can be applied to overcome the threat of Climate Change, which is a consequence of Global Warming.
If the above is true, then the key to future prosperity (or even survival in the most serious scenarios of dangerous climate change) is the advancement of the science of horticulture and the technology for Controlled Environment within greenhouse structures. Improved Sola Roof greenhouse systems will sustain a “Closed Atmosphere Controlled Environment” for enhanced horticultural production, which is not limited by natural constraints. Depletion of soils, water and non-renewable petrochemicals and the impact of severe weather or drought will not reduce the productivity of Controlled Environment horticulture, provided that greenhouse is using Sola Roof technology to sustain the ideal growing environment, while conserving and recycling all production inputs, including water, nitrogen and other nutrients and containing enriched CO 2 atmosphere to enhance photosynthesis and plant growth.
These improvements to horticulture production are know to result from closed ecological systems, and these processes are enabled by the Sola Roof technology, which works with the Closed Atmosphere natural phytomechanisms of plants to capture and transform solar energy into food, feed, fiber and fuel, while recovering water and nutrients in closed systems. While producing food intensively, in an area efficient investment, the Sola Roof also produces a surplus of clean energy, with containment of all GHG.
The impacts of Climate Change are certain to disrupt the food supply of the EU and transport of food from distant regions of the world also has a risk connected with the end of the era of cheap oil. Therefore, a policy of food security and self-reliance will require more localized and intensive production of food. Only the greenhouse horticulture sector is able to respond to this challenge. The EU has the advantage that it is the global leader with horticulture production and is the source of the most advanced greenhouse technologies in the world.
Collaborative action to push ahead with Sola Roof technology can provide exceptional new technology advantage when integrated with waste treatment of organic wastes to provide low or no-cost nutrient inputs and source required energy from the Bio Gas resources produced from the aforesaid waste treatment. Advancement of materials and mechanical systems for the efficient operation of closed greenhouse technology is within the capacity of a strong engineering sector in the EU. Sola Roof in Norway and its EU partners allow FREE access to all knowhow and best practices as we establish an Open Source community of users and encouraging a social enterprise approach to sustainable economic development.
The EU can be studied to establish “natural” Bio Regional? zones and within these areas a greater localisation of food production and consumption can be developed. Waste to Food, Feed, Fibre, Fuel for Energy or “W 2 F 4 E” can have a role to facilitate more Bio Regional? self-reliance in food supply. Gradually more of the organic wastes can become inputs to a network of clean energy waste treatment sites and these locations can have substantial Sola Roof food production facilities associated in close proximity so that the utilisation of all the organic outputs are economically viable and produce the most environmental benefit and maximize the profitability of our sustainable food strategy.