20110913
Hi George,
I am in the UK now and on my way to Norway. I am building a stronger base of support in the UK, with the probable participation of Schumacher College in the evaluation of our Agri POD product. (See attachment)
In Norway the key work, which has priority now, is the completion of our Pilot Project at the waste recycling and treatment company, Lindum (www.lindum.no) - this is a project that Anne Wirstad is managing and I believe she is still very much interested to replicate this work in Africa. The Agri POD is the product that brings together all of our best technology with great synergy and it operates on "WASTE" + solar and the system is called Food to Waste to Food (F 2 W 2 F) - this is what we will be demonstrating and evaluating at the Lindum site (at 1000 M2) on a community scale (creates 10 sustainable jobs and ROI of 3 years) and at Schumacher College (UK) and Tamera Eco Village (Portugal) on the smaller Enterprise scale (100 M2) for the social entrepreneur.
We can start with a Pilot Project in Ghana - that would work with one Enterprise Agri POD - this is suitable for a family based business. Then we can expand to the Demonstration Agri POD, which can serve a community and could be established as a Sola Roof Coop. The Pilot Project will need a budget of 100,000 euro for the labor/staff requirements that we will train and supervise, plus 50,000 euro for purchase of the Agri POD (the 100 M2 - enterprise scale). We need to operate and train and transfer technology and know how - then we can establish a business to manufacture and supply Agri POD product in Ghana. Within the closed atmosphere of the Agri POD we produce fresh vegetables, fruit, mushroom, fish, shrimp, krill, algae and feed crops as well as energy crops, which add to the biomass for production of Bio Gas for clean electrical power and hot water. We can also produce transportation fuels and all of our electrical energy production from Bio Gas is produced with no GHG emission - all CO 2 is contained in the sealed, controlled environment of the Agri POD. All the output of the Bio Digester (AD process) is used as inputs for Agri POD operation. The gas for the CHP, the liquid effluent for plant and algae culture and the solid residue is used for mushroom production. There is no release of any pollutant to the air (zero GHG emission) and no discharge of effluents (normally the cause of utrification of water ways and coastal dead zones) and no landfill of any organic solids.
All the foods produced are fresh, local and vine ripe - minimizing storage and refrigeration. The food is of the highest safety and purity with organic growing using no petrochemical inputs whatever. Our structure and plastic covers are totally recyclable. Our structure is lighter by a factor of 10 times (or more) than most building systems, using material more efficiently to do more with less embodied energy.
Agri POD is a closed atmosphere that uses the Sola Roof technology for low energy cooling and the Liquid Bubble Insulation technology retains thermal energy at night, while cooling during the day. The closed ecological life support system works with water as the primary energy path for the regenerative production of nutritious food while producing clean water and condensing the plant transpired water vapour from the closed atmosphere of the Agri POD. The 100 M2 Agri POD will generate from 500 to 1000 litres pure drinking water per day that is plant transpired. A similar quantity of grey water is released as clean, pathogen free and safe water for any other use.
The design of the Agri POD also reflects our most advanced thinking about Ecomimicry Architecture - which has the goal of pioneering "living structures" - a holistic environment supporting life that demonstrates sustainable abundance that is an attribute of Creation itself and reflects the infinite wealth and regenerative energy of the Creator, to Whom all praise is given. By seeking alignment with Nature we enable all people to experience a taste of Kingdom Living - a life that is not shut out from abundance and not constrained by the limitations of those who do not know the power of the Living God and who seek answers within a finite and material worldview. The Sola Roof is an invitation to live in the light and to know how to work the light of life to continuously renew and refresh our own life. Such a lifestyle, even with many more billions of people than now live, will not be a burden to the planet, but rather an enrichment.
The architecture of the Agri POD is "vertical" (see Vertical Farming) and such design is land efficient and needs the minimum physical "footprint", while other aspects of the Agri POD "Footprint" are negative - that is that the negative impact on the environment is zero and the benefits are positive in many ways. Outputs of clean energy, clean and pure water, organic and nutrient rich food will remove the burden of the family and community on the natural ecosystems carrying capacity and the lands and waters can regenerate and restore to the natural biodiversity with the help of a vast number of people who will work towards such objectives - since people sustained by regenerative energy, food and water will have their time freed up for such positive occupations. The elimination of scarcity of essential resources will reduce conflict and thus further release enormous human resources to work for the good of all people.
Life in all its forms is precious and must be protected and nurtured - but only people who have gained certainty that life and our self awareness of life is a sacred gift and trust can act with understanding that no life is above another - that life is not mechanistic or accidental but is alive and with purpose. Life's complexity produces infinite synergy and energy. We can celebrate our appreciation for for life and for the beauty and abundance of creation and experience this in our own lives, provided we let go of the current materialistic world view that destroys the spirit of joy and represses true power of a spirit filled life. Removal of monopoly and ownership concepts will establish a society that is diverse, resilient and free - this family of mankind will be able to not only survive the impending global crisis but empowered by hope, humanity can come through these challenges to build a better world in which growth is not exploitive and destructive as it is today, but becomes organic and sustainable - so that all may prosper in peace and security.
I pray that you may make you home, your community and your nation a place to make a start on this work and together we can build a future of abundance for all.
- Richard Nelson (Sola Roof Guy)
COMMENTS WELCOME
I thought I would just try out an edit to this page to see how it will then appear in Recent Changes?
Also, I would like to bring forward this page as an introduction to 2012. Since writing this message to George in Ghana, I have made much progress in Norway during the last 3 weeks and we now have a very capable consortium forming that will have the capacity to deliver the Agri POD product for establishing Pilot and Demonstration projects in 2012. I continue to work hard to find the supply partners and the Pioneers who will work with us and share risk - so that we can establish the successful patterns that can be replicated on a vast scale of use, by the Open Source community of users who will establish the SE Net. Concurrently we hope to see much happening in 2012 to grow the DIY Food movement.