How Design can Restore Our Relationship with Food

Erin Fenley IDUS 755 Summer 2010

INTRODUCTION

Aquaponics is a symbiotic method of growing and harvesting plants along with aquatic aquatic animals. In these recirculating systems, the fish effluent works with beneficial bacteria in gravel and plants to create concentrated, recyclable compost. Therefore, the need for outside fertilizers is eliminated. The cradle to cradle principle of “waste = food” is brilliantly displayed in this concept. Aquaponics systems have shown an increased productivity to conventional agriculture by 10 to 40 times.

Aquaponics, in theory has been an agricultural method for at least 1,500 years, not counting that theory as nature’s aquatic eco-system. However, there is a great potential for innovation and design of aquaponics systems today.

A precedent has been set for utilizing aquaponics not only for food cultivation, but as a bridge to connect urban populations to food.

Throughout this study, my research has led me to see that aquaponics systems make little sense outside of a larger view of gardening or urban farming. Aquaponics is part of the whole.

Composting is another large element that has a large impact, not only on growing food but also on our overall reduction of waste.

According to the EPA, 24 percent of the US municipal solid waste stream is made up of food remnants and yard trimmings. By diverting these useful items from landfills, a significant portion of our waste can be recovered for reuse.

Aquaponics at Growing Power: Milwaukee, WI

OPPORTUNITY

As a public, we are suffering the effects of our disconnection from fresh food sources. Increasing rates of obesity and diabetes are alarming statistics that can not be ignored. This study is important in that it looks at growing healthy foods and developing innovative design plus outreach through both. I am interested in the emotional appeal of growing food as a way to connect with people, especially disengaged groups that may have no interest in changing eating habits.

Aquaponics systems can potentially produce 10 - 40 times more food than conventional agriculture. These systems conserve water and eliminate agricultural run-off. They are naturally pesticide-free, self-fertilizing. There is an opportunity to create connections with community through composting, aquaponics, and food.

GOALS: Connect people with their food source.

Improve upon the design of an aquaponics system.

Improve upon garden compsting systems.

Aquaponics and composting can become a metaphor for sustainable design. A springboard of discussion of other closed-loop, sustainable systems can be breeched through these models.

''We have to be aware of whom we're buying our food fromand how it's produced.

Alice Waters

OPPORTUNITY STATEMENT

The design of urban farming systems, including aquaponics and composting operations, can become a method for restoring our relationship with food

and alleviating food deserts.

Marketing Background

Size of the current commercial aquaponic industry:*The controlled environment (greenhouse) commercial aquaponic industry is in its infancy, both in the U.S. and around the world. Currently there are less than five large-scale (+1 acre) facilities around the world and only two in the U.S. While several smaller operations are scattered around the country, most are on the “family farm” scale, rarely exceeding one acre.Methods of operation:*All large-scale aquaponic operations are using either Nutrient Film Technique (NFT) or floating bed hydroponic systems combined with either rectangular or round fish culturing tanks. Most small-scale aquaponic operations are using the simpler Ebb & Flow hydroponic systems with small round fish culturing tanks.*Scott Jones, Aquaponics Journal

This study takes a look at how food is produced and transported along with

the effects it has on our personal well-being and the overall health of our communities in order to inform

design opportunities.

FOCUS

Your typical frozen foods section: Anytown, USA

CHALLENGE

THE DILEMMA

urbivore | rb •vôr|noun

one who lives and eats within a city

ORIGIN: from Latin urbanus, (from urbs, urb- ‘city’) from Latin -vorus (from vorare ‘devour’)

The Dilemma:

The availability of fresh, healthy foods, the cost of those foods, and the impact those factors

make on the well-being of a community.

1200 miSince we Urbivores want cheap and convenient food, high quality is often not a requirement. We may pay less money up front but rising health care cost show we are paying more for it later.

PUBLIC HEALTH

“Americans spend less of their income on food and more on health care than the people of any other nation.” Michael Pollan, “Six Rules for Eating Wisely,” Time Magazine, 2006

A significant correlation can be seen between the amount we spend on what we eat versus our overall health.

adapted from: www.foodbubbles.com “True Cost of Beef Flowchart”

TRUE COSTS

Thanks to agricultural subsidies, the least healthy foods are also the cheapest to buy.

70% of all available freshwater is used for agriculture. Overpumping of groundwater by the world’s farmers exceeds natural replenishment by at least 160 billion cubic meters a year.

(UNESCO)

More than half the world’s population, 3.3 billion people, live in towns and cities, a number expected to rise to almost 5 billion by 2030.

(U,N. Population Fund)

80% of the energy in America’s food system goes to processing, packaging, transporting, sorting, and preparing food. Produce in the U.S. travels, on average 1,200 to 2000 miles from farm to consumer.

(National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service)

WATER POPULATION GROWTHENERGY

CHALLENGE

“We have an entirely oil-based food economy, and yet oil is running out. The impact of that on agriculture is one of the drivers of the volatility in the world food commodity markets.”

(Tim Lang, UK Food Council)

U.S. agriculture as currently practiced emits a total of 1.5 trillion pounds of CO

2 annually into the atmosphere.

(Rodale Institute)

Every dollar spent locally generates twice as much income for the local economy. When consumers buy imported goods, money leaves the community at every transaction.

(New Economics Foundation London)

OIL POLLUTION ECONOMY

Watercress in Aquaponics System: Milwaukee, WI

APPROACH

THEORY

As an expanded philosophy of environmentalism, sustainability brings a larger vision and focus into view both locally and globally. Through the four pillars of sustainability, or the four “e’s” (Ecology, Economy, Equality, and Education) the gamut of ideas, observations, and information revolving around the core of contemporary sustainability can be discussed.

Uniting principles of both business and the environment, sustainability pulls together a large coalition of support by seeking common ground between legitimate concerns of all parties. These pillars offer us a guide to act and reflect.

THE 4 E’s

• active committment to public education

• enables people to overcome obstacles in understanding issues surrounding sustainability

EdUCATION

• understanding the well-being of an individual and larger community are connected

• community building on a local and global level

EQUALITY

• secure, long-term employment without jeopardizing ecosystems

• known as valuing “Natural Capital”

ECONOMY

• short term & long term issues

• piecemeal vs systemic solutions

• knowing the limits to growth

ECOLOGY

+Scalable design

Produces 10-40x more than traditional agricultural methods

Year-round growng capabilities

Provides a metaphor for Sustainable design

Follows the principle of Waste=Food

Less spoilage through reduced transport

Recycles and cleans water

No chemicals, no soil

Protein & vegetables in symbiosis

Large network of enthusiasts

-No standard design - causes some hesitancy among new adopters

Electricity is needed for the operation to run

AQUAPONICS

+Scalable design possibilities

Keeps valuable embodied energy out of landfills

Can be used to remediate contaminated soils

Can save business and households in reduced waste hauling fees

-Changing norms in behavior

Can feel confusing at first, understanding learning curve

Negative perception of being messy and smelly

COMPOSTING

+Reclaimed wood, brick, pipe, and bathtubs from Emergent Structures

Keeping valuable construction materials out of landfills

-Perception that the harvest isn’t worth the time

SUSTAINABLE MATERIALS

HOW CAN WE TRULY MEASURE THE LIFE OF A TREE?posted on emergentstructures.com 8.25.10

In 2004 the oldest living tree was found in Sweden, a scrawny spruce like what most of us picture when we think of Charlie Brown’s Christmas tree. However, the trunk isn’t the ancient part, it’s the root system that’s outlived the last ice age and grown to be 9,550 years old. Radio carbon dating was used to determine its age.

More so than roots or radio carbon dating, I usually think of counting the rings to know the age of a tree. I picture Kim Novak in Hitchcock’s Vertigo melodramatically pointing to the rings of a majestic redwood and saying, “Here I was born and here I died. It was only a moment. You took no notice”. That scene has always haunted me, I felt what she was saying. The trees have seen so much. In a 2003 interview with Novak she said of the filming of the scene, “Just touching that old tree was truly moving to me

because when you touch these trees, you have such a sense of the passage of time, of history. It’s like you’re touching the essence, the very substance of life.”

deconstructing phase one at Strathmore Estates was like viewing a passage of time and history. I could readily see that reclaiming wood is another way of measuring the life of a tree. Although through this method you can not calculate the life and death of the tree, you can only envision its future. Adrian sitting in these trusses reminds me that these boards are still living, and now just moving on to their next job. Soon they will hold a roof that shelters Girl Scouts at camp making all new memories, creating an all new history.

Through roots, radio carbon dating,

and rings we can measure the awe-inspiring time that many trees grace the Earth. It can make us humans feel small. Through reclaiming we can have a sense of the higher purpose of the life of a tree and help it to continue its legacy.

Like all journeys, getting the “system in the room” is a step-by-step process. In addition to requiring great patience and perserverance, it takes insight into who needs to be engaged and when.

Peter Senge,The Necessary Revolution

GETTING THE SYSTEM IN THE ROOM

CONNECTIONS

MICROCOSM of ENGAGEMENT

core leadership groupErin Fenley

Design for Sustainability(SCAD)

EmergentStructures

Savannah Hydroponics

SCADCommunity

City Roots(Columbia, SC)

PublicSchools

PeterDoliber(YMCA)

Restaurants,Convenience

Stores

HarambeeHouse

Wendy Armstrong

(Thrive)

OatlandIsland

Charles Davis(Earth Comfort Co.)

MichaelMaddox

(Green BridgeFarm)

FrancisAllen

(SUGA)

MAREXUGA Aquarium

Healthy Savannah

KellyLockamy(SUGA)

circle of engagement

circle of the informed

circle to be engaged

MICROCOSM of ENGAGEMENT

core leadership groupErin Fenley

Design for Sustainability(SCAD)

EmergentStructures

Savannah Hydroponics

SCADCommunity

City Roots(Columbia, SC)

PublicSchools

PeterDoliber(YMCA)

Restaurants,Convenience

Stores

HarambeeHouse

Wendy Armstrong

(Thrive)

OatlandIsland

Charles Davis(Earth Comfort Co.)

MichaelMaddox

(Green BridgeFarm)

FrancisAllen

(SUGA)

MAREXUGA Aquarium

Healthy Savannah

KellyLockamy(SUGA)

circle of engagement

circle of the informed

circle to be engaged

Hoop House at Growing Power: Milwaukee, WI

RESEARCH

PRIMARY RESEARCH

GROWING POWER Milwaukee, WIJune 12-13, 2010

2.5 Acre Urban Farm run by Will Allen

MacArthur Genius Grant Award Winner, 2008

Vermicomposting

Aquaponics

Public Market On-Site

Employs At-Risk Youth from surrounding neighborhood

PRIMARY RESEARCH

4.5 GALLON HOME AQUAPONICS SYSTEM

Proof of Concept

Work-in-progress

4 week stabilization

device for gaining knowledge and as a conversation piece for discussion of sustainable design

PRIMARY RESEARCH

SAVANNAH URBAN GARdEN ALLIANCE

Community Gardening

Hands-on experience

Community Connections

Not a method for feeding Savannah at this time

Seeing the “Failure of the Commons”

GEORGIA ORGANICSLISTENING SESSIONStatesboro, GAJuly 27, 2010

Problems with the word “sustainability”

Rural farmers struggle to sell in their local communities

Changing view of the farmer - young farmer as “rockstar”

PRIMARY RESEARCH

gardenarea

stackedbins

bins

finishedcompost

finishedcompost

gardenarea

OPTION 1

OATLAND GARDEN COMPOSTING CONFIGURATIONS

OPTION 2

THRIVE CAFEEXPANdEd COMPOSTING

Garden at Oatland Island

desire to expand current composting efforts

Will begin providing a community drop-off spot for composting in January

design of no-turn style bin, using reclaimed materials

Berry describes three kinds of solutions to the “problems of our time.” The first, he writes, is the solution that causes “a ramifying series of new problems.” A modern example can be found in energy-efficient lightbulbs that attempt to solve the problem of carbon emissions, but leach mercury into landfills when disposed of.

The second type of solution is “that which immediately worsens the problem it is intended to solve.” Berry gives the example of attempting to fix compacted soil with a tractor whose weight further compacts the soil. Bringing in a bigger tractor only makes the situation worse.

The third type of solution, the type that Berry advocates, is what he calls “solving for pattern.”

SOLVING FOR PATTERN

...the industrial methods that have so spectacularly solved some of the

problems of food production have been accompanied by “side effects”

so damaging as to threaten the survival of farming.

Wendell Berry, Solving for Pattern

When solving for pattern, we create not more problems but rather more solutions, solving multiple problems in one stroke. Berry writes, “A bad solution acts within the larger pattern the way a disease or addiction acts within the body. A good solution acts within the larger pattern the way a healthy organ acts within the body.”the solution that causes “a ramifying series of new problems.”

Berry’s essay about the “problems of our time” was written almost thirty years ago–but it is still highly relevant. How can we enable ourselves to find real solutions to the problems of our time, versus solutions that simply create more problems?

SECONDARY RESEARCH

HUNGRY CITY:HOW FOOd SHAPES OUR LIVESby Carolyn Steel

Sweeping history of how food supply has influenced urban design since the dawn of civilization

How railroads changed everything in the moden era

The effects of globalization on our food supply and the health of our communities

image source: blog.emap.com

CITY ROOTSColumbia, SC

Modeled after Growing Powerin Milwaukee

Market and Farm

Aquaponics

FARMWORKS:AGRICULTURAL URBANISM PROTOTYPESt. Louis, MO

Making use of abandoned warehouses

Providing employment for recently released inmates

Aquaponics

Market

Seeking Funding

SECONDARY RESEARCH

2004 UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA STUdY:US WASTES ½ ITS FOOD

10 Year Study

Edible food discarded (through processing and in homes) that could feed those who need it

If corrected, could save US consumers and manufacturers $10B+/year

Environmental degradation

National security issue

2009 USdA REPORT ON THE EFFECTS OF FOOd dESERTS

Urban core areas with limited food access are characterized by higher levels of racial segregation and greater income inequality.

In small-town and rural areas with limited food access, the lack of transportation infrastructure is the most defining characteristic.

United States Department of Agriculture

Economic Research Service

June 2009

Access to Affordable and Nutritious Food: Measuring and Understanding Food Deserts and Their Consequences

Report to Congress

Amarinth: Milwaukee, WI

SYNTHESIS

SYNTHESIS

How might we alter the nation’s food system by developing and supporting

a new type of urban farming?

Can we design these farms to become a catalyst for healthier living ?

CONTINUING THE STUDY

BROAd STREET YMCA AQUAPONICS SYSTEM

Business PlanMaintenance Plan

THRIVE COMMUNITYCOMPOST

Business PlanMaintenance Plan

FOOd SYSTEM ECONOMICS

SubsidiesUpcoming Farm Bill

METHANE ENERGY THROUGH COMPOSTABLE ITEMS

Coastal Correctional Facility

GREENING THE CONVENIENCE STORE

Can it be cost effective?

APPLYING IdEAS TO OTHER CITIES WITH VARYING CHALLENGES

Johnson City, TNSouthern Appalachia

Aquaponics Journal. Web. <http://www.aquaponicsjournal.com/>.

“And Not a Drop to Drink? The Freshwater Crisis.” United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. 1996. < http://www.unesco.org/bpi/science/content/press/anglo/10.htm>.

Benyus, Janine M. Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature. New York: Morrow, 1997. Print.

Berry, Wendell. The Gift of Good Land: Further Essays, Cultural and Agricultural. San Francisco: North Point, 1981. Print.

Berry, Wendell. The Way of Ignorance: and Other Essays. Emeryville, CA: Shoemaker & Hoard, 2005. Print.

Capra, Fritjof. The Hidden Connections: Integrating the Biological, Cognitive, and Social Dimensions of Life into a Science of Sustainability. New York: doubleday, 2002. Print.

“Composting | Reduce, Reuse, Recycle | US EPA.” US Environmental Protection Agency. <http://www.epa.gov/epawaste/conserve/rrr/composting/index.htm>.

Edwards, Andres R. The Sustainability Revolution: Portrait of a Paradigm Shift. Philadelphia, Pa: New Society, 2006. Print.

Kinver, By Mark. “Food Needs ‘fundamental Rethink’” BBC News. Web. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7795652.stm>.

Mcdonough, William, and Michael Braungart. Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things. New York: North Point, 2002. Print.

Nordahl, darrin. Public Produce: the New Urban Agriculture. Washington, dC: Island, 2009. Print.

Nelson, Rebecca L. Aquaponics Food Production: Raising fish and plants for food and profit. Montello, WI: Nelson & Pade Inc. 2008. Print.

REFERENCES

Pollan, Michael. The Omnivore’s Dilemma: a Natural History of Four Meals. New York: Penguin, 2007. Print.

“Population Trends: Rapid Growth in Less Developed Regions: Population & Development : UNFPA.” UNFPA - United Nations Population Fund. Web. <http://www.unfpa.org/pds/trends.htm>.

“Reducing Food Miles.” ATTRA - National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service. Web. <http://attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/farm_energy/food_miles.html>.

Sayre, By Laura. “Organic Farming Combats Global Warming -- Big Time.” Rodale Institute. Web. <http://www.rodaleinstitute.org/ob_31>.

Schlosser, Eric. Fast Food Nation: the Dark Side of the All-American Meal. New York, NY: Harper Perennial, 2005. Print.

Senge, Peter M. The Necessary Revolution: How Individuals and Organizations Are Working Together to Create a Sustainable World. New York: doubleday, 2008. Print.

Steel, Carolyn. Hungry City: How Food Shapes Our Lives. London: Vintage, 2009. Print.

“The Public Benefit of Buying Local.” The New Economics Foundation. Web. <http://www.neweconomics.org/press-releases/north-east-sets-out-realise-public-benefit-buying-local>.

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