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  • From: Wesley Roe and Santa Barbara Permaculture Network <lakinroe@silcom.com>
  • To: permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: [permaculture] The Man Who Stopped the Desert - How One Man Saved the Soil (Video)
  • Date: Thu, 23 Dec 2010 07:59:11 -0800


The Man Who Stopped the Desert - How One Man Saved the Soil (Video)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dzah_5y65AU&feature=player_embedded

by Sami Grover, Carrboro, NC, USA on 12.23.10
FOOD & HEALTH (botanical)

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/12/the-man-who-stopped-the-desert.php#ch02
Image credit: 1080 Films
From Wangaari Maathai's Billion Tree campaign to lush permaculture landscapes in Jordan, we've seen how individuals and communities can reverse desertification and bring life back to arid soils. Now a new dramatized documentary brings us the story of Yacouba Sawadogo, an illiterate African farmer whose pioneering techniques have, according to one expert, done more for soil conservation in the Sahel region of Africa than all of the national and international soil experts combined. It's amazing stuff.
Using, and then enhancing, traditional "zai" techniques for restoring degraded land, which involve planting seeds directly into pits that have been enhanced with small handfuls of composted dung, Yacouba Sawadogo has spent over a quarter century experimenting with his soils, and then teaching his fellow farmers, resulting in the successful rehabilitation of farmland, the regrowth of forests, and attention from international media and non-profit organizations who wanted to learn more about Sawadogo's techniques.

Now a new documentary, that includes a dramatization of Sawadogo's life, and the struggles he has faced in gaining acceptance for his approach, is set to bring his story to a broader audience. The movie traces Sawadogo's story from his early education, through his days researching and developing his farming techniques, to his recent

More on Soil, Soil Restoration and the Magic of Soil Life
Wangaari Maathai's Billion Tree campaign
Greening the Desert Revisited: Permaculture in Jordan
Compost as Animal Husbandry: Moving Way Beyond Recycling
40 Tons of Life in One Acre of Soil: Geoff Lawton on the Magic of Soil (Video)
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Subject: [permaculture] Fwd: Re: [SANET-MG] soil health and soil genetic
engineering
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-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: [SANET-MG] soil health and soil genetic engineering
Date: Thu, 23 Dec 2010 10:45:46 -0500
From: joe cummins <jcummins@UWO.CA>
Reply-To: Sustainable Agriculture Network Discussion Group <SANET-MG@LISTS.IFAS.UFL.EDU>, joe cummins <jcummins@UWO.CA>
To: SANET-MG@LISTS.IFAS.UFL.EDU

Hello Douglas,
Thank you for the interesting questions. I agree that I should have
been clearer in expressing my concerns about the extensive and growing release of genetically modified soil microbes that are claimed to
enhance crop yield yet are disbursed not only in North America but
globally. Even more alarmingly the released genetically modified
microbes are being promoted as being sustainable agriculture. Has
USDA deemed such genetically modified microbes to be acceptable for
certified organic production? I hope that others will address that
conundrum.
Turning to your question on the the nitrogen fixing bacterial seed
treatment. Along with the antibiotic resistance markers with
transgenic promoters and terminators there are two main gene group
modifications with promoters and terminators. These introduce additional
copies of existing genes. The inserted genes were concerned with two
functions, gene dctABD enhanced uptake of plant dicarboxylic acids
into the nitrogen fixing bacteria in the root nodules of alfalfa. The
plant carboxylic acids provide energy for nitrogen fixation. The main
inserted gene, nifA, is a highly pleiotropic positeve regulator of a
number of bacterial functions including root nodule formation, nitrogen fixation and dealing with the alfalfa host defense response to establish symbiosis. The gene nifA is a positive regulator of a number of bacterial genes some of which have not yet been described in scientific literature. about The genes dctABD and nifA were inserted as a gene cassette into the bacterial chromosome at an inositol locus. Field studies showed that the genetic modification increases alfalfa biomas up to 19% in nitrogen limited soil.
My immediate concern about the seed treatment is the spread of
antibiotic resistance genes and the pleiotropic characteristic of the gene nifA all activated genes have not been characterized and some of those may have detrimental side effects in the diet of animals and humans.
I hope that this discussion answers the questions about nitrogen
fixation. The many other genetically modified microbes developed for use in rhizosphere engineering were barely touched by the two
examples I mentioned. These two included the auxin producing microbes
and the use of microbes modified with scorpion genes to control insect
and fungal pests. However, I have barely touched the surface of the
impending soil genetic Armageddon.
sincerely, prof. joe cummins




  • [permaculture] The Man Who Stopped the Desert - How One Man Saved the Soil (Video), Wesley Roe and Santa Barbara Permaculture Network, 12/23/2010

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