I just learned (via 680 News) that the Liquor Control Board of Ontario will be introducing a new bottle deposit system (similar to The Beer Store), starting Feb. 2007, in an effort to promote bottle recycling.
Hmmm…not sure what to make of this.
On the one hand, I think it’s great that the LCBO is trying to promote recycling – perhaps this will be the perfect way to get those people who never use their blue box to at least start recyling their booze bottles. On the other hand, given the larger size of liquor and wine bottles, I can see this potentially irritating some people.
One person quoted in the article feels it’s a waste of time and only adds more greenhouse emissions to the atmosphere (resulting from people driving to return the bottles). I see what this person is saying, but at the same time I might argue that people would only typically return bottles if they were on their way to buy more anyway.
Regardless, it will be interesting to see how this pans out. Hopefully it will indeed result in a higher rate of recycling.
Technorati Tags: recycling, LCBO, bottle deposit, wine bottles, blue box, ontario, liquor
Written by Bentley on December 1st, 2006 with 2 comments.
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I’ve been meaning to write a post about aquaponics for a little while now. This is a topic that has fascinated me for quite some time. It’s not too surprising given the fact that my post-secondary studies (and personal interests) have focused on both aquatic biology and later waste management. Aquaponics is the perfect marriage of both.
The term aquaponics comes from the combination of aquaculture and hydroponics. A similar term, ‘bioponics’, can be used to describe basically any natural hydroponic system.
In an aquaponic system fish (or some other marketable aquatic organism) are raised in much the same way they would be via aquaculture, but rather than pumping waste effluent down the drain or into the nearest river, this nutrient rich water is fed into a hydroponic system where it is used to grow plants. The filtered water can then be recirculated back into the fish tanks for reuse (thus expensive filtration systems are not needed). It is the ultimate closed, sustainable food production system.
This is obviously an over-simplification of the process (and there are many variations), but you get the idea.
I first learned about aquaponics via S&S Aquafarms and their excellent email list. These days it seems to be less active than it once was, but I highly recommend you sign up, and check out the list archive if this is something you might be interested in learning more about.
Another great resource is The University of the Virgin Islands, where aquaponics research has been conducted for quite a few years now. Their aquaponics website is pretty basic but is full of interesting information and photos. They actually offer a 7 day aquaponics course every year – the ultimate hands-on experience for those interested in starting up their own operations.
If you are looking for an excellent introduction to aquaponics, I VERY highly recommend you have a look at the aquaponics pdf guide put together by ATTRA (National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service). It is an excellent resource, and has some fantastic photos.
You may also want to check out our aquaponics section in the directory if you are still eager to learn more.
Update: For a more up to date and expanded aquaponics resource page, be sure to check out the Compost Guy Aquaponics page.
Technorati Tags: aquaponics, hydroponics, bioponics, UVI, aquaculture, sustainable agriculture, fish farming, recirculating
Written by Bentley on December 1st, 2006 with no comments.
Read more articles on Gardening and Waste Management.
