Costa Rica Beach, Costa Rica Beaches,Beaches In Costa Rica, Best Costa Rica Beaches.
Costa Rica Agroforestry Project
-
Upload
remineralize -
Category
Education
-
view
3.403 -
download
3
description
Transcript of Costa Rica Agroforestry Project
Costa Rica Agroforestry ProjectFood, fuel and income to sustain local communities
“We are trying to design an Earth-healing economic landscape with short and mid-term economic value. This will be followed by a slower maturing, long-term forest that will eventually be capable of supporting an economy decades and even centuries into the future.” -John Todd
Our Vision
Land History• Located in the Guanacaste region of
Costa Rica
• Once covered in thick, lush forest
• 50 years ago the land was deforested for cattle production
• Changes resulted in soil erosion, displacement of native species, and a hotter, drier landscape
• The land became exhausted, showed diminished microbial activity, low atmospheric carbon sequestration, and produced little cattle
Deforested cattle land
Remineralization Overview
Remineralization can potentially enhance the growth of tree and agricultural crops as much as 2 to 4 times in places where there are local sources of mineral fines readily available.
Remineralization is based on an economics of abundance, and promotes healthier nutrient dense foods, local food and economic security, based on a sustainable community model.
Remineralized Jatropha produces a higher yield
of oil-bearing seeds
Basalt rock dust used for remineralization
Agroforestry Project in Costa Rica
• Project sponsored by RTE
• Designed by John Todd of OAI, with project manager William Turley
• Models ecologically sustainable production
• Bioremediates land damaged by development
Partners
John Todd
• Internationally recognized biologist and visionary leader in ecological design
• Named “Hero of the Planet” by Time magazine
• Teaches Ecological Design at University of Vermont
• Inventor of Living Machines for the treatment of wastes, production of foods, generation of fuels and restoration of damaged aquatic environments
• Winner of the $100,000 Buckminster Fuller Award for a design to recover Appalachia
Buckminster Fuller Institute with RTE’s Greg Watson and John Todd in the middle (Greg left; John right)
John Toddon the Costa Rica Agroforestry Project
• First off, I believe that remineralization is the basis of restoring soil fertility.
• Secondly, that Costa Rica’s volcanic rock ground up has enormous potential.
• Thirdly, that we have to increase organic matter in the soils and add clay-based humic materials to finish off the mix.
Project Goals
• To demonstrate the potential and evaluate the effectiveness of soil remineralization using finely ground rock dust to create fertile soils in climates with pronounced wet and dry seasons
• To study the accumulation and long-term storage of organic carbon in forest soils
Volcanic Rock Dust
• To demonstrate ecologically sustainable production of food, fuel and income
Research Procedure• 2 test plots encompassing 2 hectares
(5 acres)
• One hectare did not receive rock dust (control plot)
• One hectare did receive rock dust (experimental plot)
• Trees in both plots were given compost and aged cow manure at time of planting
• Trees in both plots were not irrigated during dry season unless under severe stress
Jatropha seedlings in new plot
• Comparing the growth and health of trees and shrubs planted with and without rock powders
• Local volcanic basalt rock dust containing natural minerals and trace elements were applied to nourish native species
• Quantity applied: 340 kg/hectare (750 lbs/hectare) distributed annually for 5 years
• The next planting preparation mix consisted of +/- 6 lbs of rock dust per tree, which at 1,000 trees/acre (2 meter spacing) equals 3 tons/acre (amount recommended by Joanna Campe of RTE)
Testing Protocol
Chile Dulce sproutswith and without rock dust
Reforestation• Approximately 1,600 trees/hectare were planted with 2.5 meter spacing
between each specimen
• Three different groups of trees were planted:
Jatropha cuttings
1. Native hardwoods of commercial value
2. Fruit trees for local consumption
3. Oil-producing trees for biofuel use (Jatropha)
Trees Planted in 2008•
Spanish Name English Name Latin Name
Aguacate Avocado Persea americana Cedro Amargo Spanish Cedar Cedrela odorata Cenizaro Rain Tree Albizia samam Espavel Wild Cashew Anacardium excelsum Guanabana Soursop Annona muricata Guayaba Guava Psidium guajava Jacote Spanish Plum Spandius purpurea Jatropha Jatropha Jatropha curcas Limon Lemon/Lime Citrus spp Madero Negro Quick Stick Tree Gliricidia sepium Malinga Horseradish Tree Moringa oleifera Malinche Flamboyant Tree Delanix regia Mango Mango Mangifera indica Nance Shoemaker’s Tree Byrsonima crassifolia Naranja Orange Citrus aurantium Nispero Chicle Manilkara chicle Noni Indian Mulberry Morinda citrifolia Papaya Papaya Carica papaya Pomelo Grapefruit Citrus x paradisi Suncoya Suncoya Annona purpurea Zapote Sapote Pouteria sapota
We have also planted the giant bamboo from Indonesia and Guadua from Brazil. Cedro Amargo seedlings
Tree Species Planted in February
Native Hardwoods
• Contribute material for commercial products to help sustain the regional economy
• Slow growing; benefits in decades to come
• Ecological restoration of native forest species
• Candidate species included: Guanacaste tree, Cocobol, Ron Ron, Guapinol, Cenizara, Cortez Amarillo, and the Ceiba tree.
Cedro Amargo
Agriculture
• Agricultural component fulfilled by planting fruit and nut trees for local consumption
• Quicker benefits through planting of: avocado, wild cashew, guava, Spanish plum, lemon, lime, mango, orange, papaya, and grapefruit
Food Producing Trees
Avocado trees
Two-year old papaya... Wild cashew(Anacardium excelsum) seedling
Producing food
JatrophaPromising Sustainable Biofuel
• The Jatropha, a small tree well known for its oil production and its soil building properties
• Yields around 1,590 kg/hectare/year (3,500 lbs/ha/yr) of oil highly suitable as a biodiesel fuel, to be used as a local source of energy
• This particular species promises to be cutting-edge in its ability to both produce fuel and enhance soil fertility, distinguishing it from other commonly used sources of biofuel which are highly unsustainable
Jatropha seeds and hulls
Jatropha buds...
...and blossoms
Growth Stages
Jatropha Seed Pods
Project manager William Turley showing offbounty of Jatropha Seeds
A Biodiesel Fuel that Builds Soilsand Sequesters Carbon• It will be innovative and promising to show that a
biodiesel fuel can be produced that simultaneously builds soils and sequesters carbon
• We look forward to demonstrating the potential to rebuild and regenerate soils and produce energy and food at the same time.
• This would be a breakthrough development that could lead to larger scale sustainable practices in the future.
• This will shift us into environmentally successful and responsible policies, good news for Lester Brown of the Worldwatch Institute as well as peak oil experts such as Richard Heinberg.
The remineralized group also exhibited a larger root mass and greater leaf density
Increased Growth of Jatropha
• Jatropha trees receiving the rock dust produced larger and more abundant seeds and grew more vigorously than their counterparts in the control plot
Jatropha capsules
Jatropha seedlings treated with rock minerals Jatropha seedlings not treated with rock minerals
Seedling growth comparison
After 6 Months
Control without rock dust
Remineralized
Jatropha Growth After 1 Year
Project manager William Turley with remineralized jatropha
Full-sized Jatropha bush
Mushroom from the tree planting zone Gringo the goatoccasional field assistant
Ecosystem Healthand more...
The benefits of replicating sustainably intercropped Jatropha in Cameroon and Africa
• Replace firewood harvesting
• Reduce importation of expensive kerosene in rural areas
• Provide sustainable livelihoods in areas now severely damaged by drought, desertification and hunger
• Restore exhausted soils which fuel climate change into agricultural food production in just a few years
• Create an economic model based on community self-reliance
An Economics of Abundance
Rocks are the most abundant resource on earth. We can move from an economics based on scarcity using fossil fuels to an economics of abundance through remineralization.
Remineralization and local food systems are a key strategy to transition us to a low energy based economy.
Low energy input + nutrient dense = sustainability and healthy food for all!