Technologies
Technologies
Technology, be it nano or nana, offers us a bright ray of
hope for dealing with the problems plaguing our world, everything from wind
& solar power to water jackets on wood fuel stoves. Each of these tools can
be used to make current processes more efficient, or perhaps create new
processes to do things in different ways.
In environmental terms, a reliance on technology to save ‘our
necks’ is known as the Promethean response after the mythological figure.
Prometheus was a champion of mankind who was known for his particularly wily
intelligence. He stole fire from Zeus and gave it to mortals. Hence the
parallel with technological solutions to our modern problems.
However the Greek myth ended poorly with Prometheus
chained to a rock, destined to have his liver eaten by an eagle every day for
eternity. In the same way we should be wary of relying purely on technological
solutions but consider this to be an aspect of the ‘whole’ solution.
For more information see the categories below...
Biochar Production |  | 
Recently I have been developing an interest in Biochar production. Biochar is a type of charcoal which is usually buried in the soil, post innoculation with nutrients/organisms. Once in the soil it provides an aggregation site for nutrients effectively trapping them in the soil and making them available to plants. If you are technically minded, then Biochar increases both the pH and CEC. The other benefit of Biochar production is that it takes actively cycling carbon, that is carbon in living matter, and converts it to an extremely stable state for sequestration, in the form of Biochar. Estimates on the residency time of Biochar range from 100-10,000 years, though I understand that most seem to agree on the 1000-3000 year time frame. With our current concerns around increasing CO2 levels in our atmosphere, and greenhouse warming, this sequestration benefit shouldn't be overlooked. Biochar is created by burning organic matter in an anaerobic environment. This can be done in very sophisticated ways, as it is done on a commercial scale, but can also be done in a very simple way on a home scale. The video below demonstrates the home scale Biochar unit designed by Peter Hirst. It is this kind of unit that we are currently building for the This Sustainable House project and which we will demonstrate on site in due course. Enjoy!
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