Change starts with your underwear.

As much as I love food and could blab endlessly about my recent local food excursion at SNOB, I've decided to do a post on something else I'm interested in. And you should be, too.

ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
(and the profound degree to which coal sucks)

In light of the recent radiation scares in Japan, alternative forms of energy production have been hotly debated. While the disastrous effects of the earthquake should never be discounted, the situation has created a unique opportunity for Japan to install new and environmentally friendlier energy. The estimated cost of repair in Fukushima is $310 billion, with a sizable portion of that going to the repair and rebuilding of the nuclear reactors. Instead of investing that money in a technology that can be potentially harmful, officials could choose to back other alternative energy sources such as solar or wind. Even still, nuclear power will be reestablished due to the extensive power needs of the area. While my opinion doesn't really matter, I think nuclear power has its place in the green, environmentally friendly future. Granted, its waste creates an issue, but that's what science is for, right? Unfortunately, the disaster in Japan has given nuclear energy a bad reputation again after a short-lived moment in the positive spotlight (think post-3MI&Chernobyl, pre-Fukushima) which coal execs the world over are LOVING.

With that said, I bring the issue to our own backyard and our own awesome coal-fired power plants. I think it's safe to say we all understand the epic awfulness of coal? If not, type in "disadvantages of coal power" into google and ignore anything that has "advantages" in the title. If you think nuclear is "bad," coal is like...baddd.er.

Anyway, I have a solution. This solution starts with change. And change...starts with our underwear. Watch this:

Why college is awesome.

So I mean, my college career is almost up. I've never run around the city of Charleston in my undies. I think this should change. Let me know if you want to run around half-naked with me!

Article: College activists strip down

Sea Food

Ok, so you know what your eating...but the question is should you be eating it? How about eating not only local food but also sustainably harvested seafood? Easier said than done. For instance clams and oysters cannot be sustainably harvested in the summer, yet are two of the most popular summer foods. Turn the calendar to fall and winter, how many people are prepared to give up mahi-mahi, grouper, shrimp, king & spanish mackerel, and wreckfish during this time period? Shrimp is one of the most popular seafood in the United States. Ok so what can you eat? Local and sustainable options available year-round include blue crab, swordfish (thanks to conservation efforts), and locally farm raised striped bass. For more information go to scaquarium.org/ssi for more information on local and imported fish as well as local restaurants serving sustainably caught seafood.

Underwater Kites: Harnessing Tidal Energy

Minesto, the company behind that under-sea kite project called "Deep Green," has announced they've received over $560,000 from The Carbon Trust to dive forward with deploying a prototype of their technology. If successful, the company says it would generate enough electricity to power all of the homes in a city the size of Newcastle (population 189,863) by 2020.

These under-sea kites harness the power of oceanic forces in much the same way that land-based kites capture wind energy. As this article from SmartPlanet illustrates, a rudder-controlled kite "flies" through the deep ocean in a figure eight pattern, capturing and magnifying wave energy as water passes through, then channels it through a turbine which sends the power to a generator located below on the sea floor. Because the motion of the kite against the current can intensify the power of the ocean current by a magnitude of 10, this device can work effectively, even in less-than-vigorous waters. That enhances its potential globally and makes it a serious contender in the race for sustainable, renewable energy.

http://www.smartplanet.com/business/blog/intelligent-energy/tidal-energy-gives/5104/

April showers

So the rains have come and we are loving it. Everything weve put in so far is coming up and we are starting to see the fruits of our labors. Below is some Holy basil (Tulsi) we put in a few weeks ago and its just now coming up. Its got a great flavor and makes for a very refreshing tea.

The peppers we started from seed are now in the ground and looking good. As are the ones that came from Sea Island, they are coming up quickly and have handled the transplant well. They are also interspersed with marigolds to curb the bugs
We cheated here and got some eggplant seedlings since the ones we started from seed are still a bit behind. But they wont fruit until the soil is fairly warm, so it will be a while till we are eating fresh eggplant parmesan.
Our herbs are coming along really well and have taken the transplant like champs, weve got some dill coming up in the back too. The green onions are delicious and do not taste like anything you can get in the store.
All of our leafy greens are looking great too, the rain that we had has really done them well. it might be hard to wait and let them grow up before i make myself a nice salad.
This was our biggest project, although it doesn't look like it. 35 tomato seedlings, 6 different varieties. The transplant has been a bit rough, mostly because we waited so long to get them in the ground. It was a bit too cold last week for them so we put it off and they go root bound, im hoping between the mushroom compost and the sun they will come back quickly and be fruiting soon. There are also about 100 onions interspersed among the tomatoes as well, as they compliment each other well in the nutrients they require.
We've also completed the chicken coop and need to get off our butts and buy some chickens. we think we will be going with rhode island reds. The total cost of our coop was $23.00 shows you how cheaply you can do it if you put your mind to it. On that note, we tabulated the total cost of our garden so far and its less than $400. Its not expensive, just lots of work.
Our friend Andrea down the street traded us some tomatoes for some beans she raised and they are already reaching out and grabbing the trelace.
We have also branched out and gotten some fruits, we now have blueberries and pomegranate as well as strawberries and my friend Daniel has offered us some raspberry seedlings as well.
The only thing we really have left to do besides planting okra and potatoes and laying down mulch. We will be using pine straw mulch as its cheap and will help the soil as it degrades. We are still on the look out for a larger water catchment system as the 50 gallons we capture each rain doesnt last very long. Thats all weve got for now.

Eat this Not That!!!

I have recently started reading the book entitled "Eat This Not That", which clams to be a supermarket survival guide. In the beginning of this book it explains the little bonus ingredients that the FDA allows in you food. For example, canned pineapples are allowed to have 20% of moldy fruit, canned tomatoes can have up to 5 fly eggs or 2 maggots per 500 grams, frozen broccoli can have up to 60 mites per 100 grams, Popcorn( which is considered to be on of the healthy snack foods) is allowed to have 1 rodent pellet in one sample or 2 rodent hairs per pound, and so on. I don't know about you but I never seen this in any type of advertisement or on any packages when buying these types of food. I thought this was interesting because people including me in our society freak out when we see a piece of hair in our food and the government will not allow unlicensed cooks and bakers to sale food out of a none certified kitchen, but its okay if industries let a couple of maggots slide through. WHAT ?!? They say that these amounts are not harmful to you health but who's to say they are not going to make you sick. I have now started reading the calorie portion of this book where they express false listed calories on packaged food and compare different "Low calorie" meals.

The James Beard Foundation is a non-profit located in NYC that exists for the preservation, development, and celebration of culinary excellence in the USA. Generally, the foundation invites chefs and restaurants from around the country to cook for celebrity audiences (anything ranging from Hollywood stars to politicians). OAK Steakhouse, for example, has been invited for the past 4 years.

I was researching Animal, Vegetable, Miracle and found that Barbara Kingsolver was actually given a James Beard Award for her innovative depiction and advocacy of sustainable agriculture and good, healthy, domestic food sources. I find this very interesting because I truly believe it indicates a culture shift (kind of like the fact that Subway now outnumbers McDonalds!). You'd expect a prestigious culinary institution to support the most sophisticated and complex of food creations, no matter where they are from; now, it seems as though such institutions are hopping on board the simple agricultural sustainable food movement.

This is mirrored by all the supporters of "Lowcountry Local First," which happen to be the fanciest restaurants in Charleston. Soon, our definition of delectable may be raw and straight from the farm!

while we are discussing new farming techniques

Recent blogs have been discussing new techniques for farming.  This reminded me of the first time I was introduced to the idea of hydroponics and other farming techniques that do not use excess water, land or nutrients.  And I found out about these techniques in the weirdest place possible.  

Thats right Walt Disney World. 

pumpkin mickey...still kinda creepy

The "Living in the land ride" and the "behind the seeds" tour actually show some of the different ways that Disney is trying  to make "the world a healthier place to live in." The ride and tour show you Disney's steps in Aeroponics,Nutrient film technique, inter crop techniques, vertical growing techniques, aquaculture, Biotechnology Lab, integrated Pest Management Lab.  In fact their "tomato tree" has been named the most productive tomato plant because of their innovative way of making a tomato plant grow taller and then rest on an constructed net so that it can grow outward.  Weird right? And they grow some plants (mostly melons or anything that can easily hold a shape) to look like mickey mouse heads.  That way when you order something at a restaurant you can act like you beheaded Mickey. 

Tour guides make hilarious candid photo expressions

eggplant tree

hydroponic growth of lettuce and cabbage, quite useful if your soil sucks and you have the water/nutrients for it. It also maximizes space use

a system where they spray the roots of plants with water and nutrients.  It decreases waste water  because the plant is not sitting in the water

the crops all use different nutrients so they can safely use the water, not kill each other off and save space

once again the entire point is no soil and maximum use of space

The most productive tomato plant in the world according to Guinness book of world records

pumpkin trees

use of sand to efficiently plant very large radishes

The plants grow really large due to the excess of nutrients in the water

Their hydroponic systems and their call to not use pesticides on their crops is very pleasing.  They lessened their impact on the environment by growing indoors and decreasing water use.  They could even help countries with poor soil by spreading these practices or finding ways to reduce the costs.  It also pleases me that the food they grow in these greenhouses (that mimic the different habitats of the world to make the ride cooler) goes to the restaurants in Epcot.  In fact when you leave they suggest eating at those restaurants so that you can know where your food went.  The aquaculture was even interesting because they had an alligator area meant to help restore the alligators developing Disney wiped out (even though the tanks were kind of dirty, but that's the marine biologist in me).  
It was just nice to remember, after all our readings, that not all big corporations are completely heartless (although Disney has many transgressions). Although these techniques don't replace good old fashioned farming techniques and the increase need for nutrients/creepily big vegetables  is a difficult hurdle.  These practices could be helpful around the world and I applaud the idea.
So Dr. Burkett you can feel less dirty about taking your children to Walt Disney world as long as you only ate fish and hung out in Epcot mostly.  :  )

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Living_with_the_Land
http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/parks/epcot/attractions/living-with-the-land/ 
http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/tours-and-experiences/behind-the-seeds/