[Terrapreta] action or words
David Yarrow
dyarrow at nycap.rr.com
Sun Sep 2 13:52:38 EDT 2007
i hear you, robert. actions still speak louder than words, but words look better on a computer screen. i'm usually too busy doing to get tangled in talk and randomized reading. last night was my rare moment of online babble. it was nice to unload some pent up thoughts into script, but i still have a lot to do. or, "we" have a lot to do. i'm impressed by how much you are doing, and the quality of your work.
on march 18, i met danny day in athens, GA and inspected his bioconversion facility. i recognized the key value of his pyrolysis system to create biofuel energy and reverse climate change, while increasing soil fertility and its capacity to produce nutrient dense foods. i already promote rockdust, sea minerals, compost, and compost tea as soil renewal strategy:
www.championtrees.org/topsoil
since then, i've developed a workshop on "soil fertility, biofuel & carbon sequestration" illustrated by one of my fancy flashy powerpoint shows:
www.championtrees.org/biofuel
my goal is to introduce the combined pyrolysis, charcoal, terra preta, sea minerals, and rockdust strategy to folks who are clueless -- particularly farmers and municipal governments in NY in the northeast. i've done this talk four times thus far this year, mostly in small scale ways to tiny audiences while i develop the rhetoric and illustrations. and my friend NH doug clayton taught a biofuel & charcoal workshop at the northeast organic farming summer conference last month in amherst, MA -- i was already teaching three other workshops. and our friend dan kittredge taught a workshop on remineralization with rockdusts.
i currently have four more dates scheduled this fall to give this talk, and am arranging three, maybe four more. i tried to get danny day on the agenda at the acres usa eco-agriculture conference (www.acresusa.com) in kentucky in december, but thus far this hasn't materialized.
currently, i end this talk with a question: "anyone want to make charcoal this fall?" this means a primitive, experimental charcoal maker, without attempting to capture the outgases. just charcoal to experiment with next spring. in november, i hope to fire up a 50-gallon charcoal maker here at my place, stacked with brush cuttings, bamboo and larger plant stalks (my already restored soils produce six to ten foot tall milkweed, valerian, lambsquarter, burdock, sunchoke, pokeweed....).
next year, i want to give this talk to a wider audience, especially to farmers. and next year, my closing question will be: "anyone want to form a cooperative and start producing biofuel?" my principal proposal will be for farmer coops to acquire a franchise for danny day's technology, which danny says he is ready to deploy as one-ton batch process units. maybe by next year other systems will be available.
two other tracks for this strategy are to educate municipal and state officials about this pyrolysis-charcoal-carbon-sequester strategy. here in NY, all large municipalities are required by NY environmental law to separate organic wastes, and most have a composting operation for yard waste, tree trimmings and wood chips that could be converted to pyrolysis.
that summarizes my doings this year and next. back to other work.
David Yarrow
"If yer not forest, yer against us."
Turtle EyeLand Sanctuary
44 Gilligan Road, East Greenbush, NY 12061
dyarrow at nycap.rr.com
www.championtrees.org
www.OnondagaLakePeaceFestival.org
www.citizenre.com/dyarrow/
www.farmandfood.org
www.SeaAgri.com
"Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times,
if one only remembers to turn on the light."
-Albus Dumbledore
----- Original Message -----
From: Robert Flanagan
To: Sean K. Barry
Cc: David Yarrow ; terrapreta at bioenergylists.org
Sent: Sunday, September 02, 2007 2:35 AM
Subject: Re: [Terrapreta] A New Theory of Climate Change
Hey Guys,
I find it quite hard at times to read some of the emails from this list as they tend to drift back and forth with no real focus on proposed actions!!! What I'm hoping will come from the new IBI website is a data base to direct all these ideas into direct action so people like me that hang on each and every piece of practical data to guide me on my next trial don't have to sift through unrelated info.
I think this "Terra Preta" list really really needs to set clear objectives with a start, middle and end in relation to recreating Terra Preta on at least three soil types. To simply send mails back and forth with no direction is mearly "Preaching to the choir".
I've been on the road (self funded) for over three years trying to find ways I can make a difference and show others the benefits of adding biochar into sustainable agriculture, I for one would like to know how many contributing writers are putting into the ground...and where their data is!
It's said "The pen is mightier then the sword" but not when every one is doing nothing more then holding the pen! When you say "ACTION" it needs to have a start, a middle and an end (the proof!!!) otherwise it's not action, it's an activity! with no sence of purpose and little benefit to others!
LESS TALK, MORE TRIALS!!!
Rob.
On 9/2/07, Sean K. Barry <sean.barry at juno.com> wrote:
Hi David,
Thank you David! I hold many of these sentiments too. Sometimes this list just drives me crazy with the nonsense I see and hear. The rationalizing and denial is just the beginning. The malaise when you want to talk about the problems in any rational or technical way is palpable. It's like there is intentional disregard for anything real to be shown. Some just don't want to hear it. They will babble about anything to try and throw you off base. I am really getting to think that talk means nothing.
I think that ACTION is the only thing reasonable to do. I am acting on my beliefs. I need to do more of just this and stop trying to beat the drum for this cause too much. Some people are just never going to get in with it. They don't' think the same. They do not observe. They do not look beyond themselves and there own personal needs for feeling safe about not changing a damned thing about what they do ... It gets exasperating. The thing is ... and this will chap there asses ... I'm way better at doing, than I am at trying to convince the hoards of putzi about what is going on.
Regards,
SKB
----- Original Message -----
From: David Yarrow
To: terrapreta at bioenergylists.org
Sent: Saturday, September 01, 2007 11:50 PM
Subject: Re: [Terrapreta] A New Theory of Climate Change
i think this quote below is utter and complete nonsense by hardheads still
stuck in denial, who are willynilly willing to fabricate data to support
their unwillingness to admit how massively human industrial abuse of nature
is dismantling the ecosystems that are our planetary life support systems.
over the decades, having dealt with many addictive, self righteous and
self-centered personalities, i know reality is no obstacle for such people
to rationalize and sustain their behaviors and habits. and what we are
faced with is an entire society massively addicted to oil, coal and wood
products consumption.
since the 70s, it has been my observation (and many others') that trees in
general are not growing well, and in fact are actively dying on many
mountaintops. any ecologically sentient person who drives through any
american city can see ample evidence trees are not healthy, and are in
serious decline. and along highways there is lots more evident evidence.
and if that isn't enough factual data about the deepening crisis of trees
and forests, just study the data for several steady years of increasing
forest fires, and over-spent budgets for fire fighting.
or consult the data on the increase of deserts worldwide.
considering that trees and forests are the lungs of the earth that allow the
biosphere and atmosphere to breathe out oxygen and fix carbon, this has very
serious and rapidly onrushing consequences.
what is truly alarming isn't that the trees and forests are declining. what
is alarming is how few humans notice and grasp the significance. we are
raising a generation that is computer literate, but has little ecological
literacy -- no capacity to observe, understand and interact intelligently
with nature.
David Yarrow
"If yer not forest, yer against us."
Turtle EyeLand Sanctuary
44 Gilligan Road, East Greenbush, NY 12061
dyarrow at nycap.rr.com
www.championtrees.org
www.OnondagaLakePeaceFestival.org
www.citizenre.com/dyarrow/
www.farmandfood.org
www.SeaAgri.com
"Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times,
if one only remembers to turn on the light."
-Albus Dumbledore
----- Original Message -----
From: "Jeff Davis" < jeff0124 at velocity.net>
To: "terrapreta" < terrapreta at bioenergylists.org>
Sent: Saturday, September 01, 2007 11:13 PM
Subject: Re: [Terrapreta] A New Theory of Climate Change
> "A review of the research literature concerning the environmental
> consequences
> of increased levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide leads to the conclusion
> that increases during the 20th Century have produced no deleterious
> effects
> upon global weather, climate, or temperature. Increased carbon dioxide
> has,
> however, markedly increased plant growth rates. Predictions of harmful
> climatic effects due to future increases in minor greenhouse gases like
> CO2
> are in error and do not conform to current experimental knowledge."
>
> end of snippet:
> http://www.oism.org/pproject/s33p36.htm
>
> Lots of data and science.
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--
Robert Flanagan
Chairman & President
Hangzhou Sustainable Agricultural Food & Fuel Enterprise Co., Ltd.
Skype "saffechina"
Tel: 86-571-881-850-67
Cell: 86-130-189-959-57
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