Healthy soil and sustainable growing

["TradingPostPaul" <tradingpost@riseup.net>]

Well, I like mules. Unfortunately ethanol from coffee waste can't even make
enough fuel to get the coffee to market. And humans need food more than
coffee, and the world is short of affordable, local food right now. Those
coffee growers need more local food right now instead of high priced
imports. Check out the economic plight of the coffee growers. Too many
trapped in the global market. 

Let's don't give up the possible just because the ideal of recycling all
organic waste is not about to happen. And by the way - you don't need so
much internal combustion if you use organic waste where it's generated.
People will do what they need to when they find they have to. I drive 30
miles to get loads of manure, but that uses a lot less energy than if I
bought commercial fertilizer made from natural gas. When I have chickens
even that will stop. 

paul tradingpost@lobo.net

*********** REPLY SEPARATOR  ***********

On 12/23/2007 at 4:30 PM Phil Bunch wrote:

>So the crops should be transported on mule back? The main reason cocaine
>is
>a crop of choice in Colombia is because farmers need a crop they can
>transport to market efficiently. Mules are great for high value products
>but
>for tomatoes and potatoes they are less desirable.
>
>Perhaps in an ideal world all crop residue would be returned directly to
>the
>soil and people would start doing this tomorrow. That is unlikely to cut
>the
>mustard in the short to mid-term. If the world is going to make the
>required
>transitions it is going to do so with the help of the internal combustion
>engine. 
>
>Something about the baby with the bath water?
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: livingontheland-bounces@lists.ibiblio.org
>[mailto:livingontheland-bounces@lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of
>TradingPostPaul
>Sent: Sunday, December 23, 2007 8:56 AM
>To: livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org
>Subject: Re: [Livingontheland] Ethanol from Coffee
>
>
>It an example of how organic wastes can be diverted from soil building to
>prop up our unsustainable energy-hog society. With the rising cost of all
>the fossil-fuel based inputs, all available organic wastes need to be
>returned to the soil to rebuild soil and maintain food production. 
>
>paul tradingpost@lobo.net
>
>*********** REPLY SEPARATOR  ***********
>
>On 12/23/2007 at 6:21 AM Phil Bunch wrote:
>
>>In Colombia they are developing a process to distil ethanol from coffee
>>waste products. Coffee berries have a sweet pulp around the coffee bean
>>that
>>currently is thrown away and causes a lot of contamination of rivers. The
>>preliminary testing indicates that the process will be cheap and will
>>produce significant amounts of ethanol for fuel.
>>
>>This is a really good example of how reduced dependency on oil can create
>>new opportunities and solve problems. It also will not reduce food
>supplies
>>as do other sources and will provide extra income for the coffee growers.
>>This looks like a big win-win.
>>
>>Phil Bunch
>>