Hines Farm Sunset 2010-06-04 and Shop Projects completed 2010-06-05

Hines Farm Sunset 2010-06-04
2010-06-05 Project Work
3 Remaining Tools to Put Casters On In Shop
New Walnut Wood Seat Made Out of Old Office Chair Base

Resources for investigating biochar/charcoal for oil spill cleanup by SeaChar.org

Research Papers:
————–
http://www.biochar-international.org/node/1616
Laboratory-scale bioremediation of oil-contaminated soil of Kuwait with soil amendment materials
Abstract - A huge amount of oil-contaminated soil remains unremediated in the Kuwait desert. The contaminated oil has the potentiality to cause pollution of underground water and to effect the health of people in the neighborhood. In this study, laboratory scale bioremediation experiments were carried out.Hyponex (Hyponex, Inc.) and bark manure were added as basic nutrients for microorganisms, and twelve kinds of materials (baked diatomite, microporous glass, coconut charcoal, an oil-decomposing bacterial mixture (Formula X from Oppenheimer, Inc.), and eight kinds of surfactants) were applied to accelerate the biodegradation of oil hydrocarbons.15% to 33% of the contaminated oil was decomposed during 43 weeks’ incubation. Among the materials tested, coconut charcoal enhanced the biodegradation. On the contrary, the addition of an oildecomposing bacterial mixture impeded the biodegradation. The effects of the other materials were very slight.The toxicity of the biodegraded compounds was estimated by the Ames test and the tea pollen tube growth test. Both of the hydrophobic (dichloromethane extracts) and hydrophilic (methanol extracts) fractions showed a very slight toxicity in the Ames test. In the tea pollen tube growth test, the hydrophobic fraction was not toxic and enhanced the growth of pollen tubes.

—————-
http://www.springerlink.com/content/p2×8jr6j662337w7/
M.O. Adebajo1 Contact Information, R.L. Frost1, J.T. Kloprogge1, O. Carmody1 and S. Kokot1
(1) School of Physical &; Chemical Sciences, Queensland University of Technology, 2 George Street, GPO Box 2434, Brisbane, QLD 4001, Australia
Abstract - This paper reviews the synthesis and the absorbing properties of the wide variety of porous sorbent materials that have been studied for application in the removal of organics, particularly in the area of oil spill cleanup. The discussion is especially focused on hydrophobic silica aerogels, zeolites, organoclays and natural sorbents many of which have been demonstrated to exhibit (or show potential to exhibit) excellent oil absorption properties. The areas for further development of some of these materials are identified.
—————

Youtube videos of biochar and oil experiments:
———————

Biochar Gulf Solutions
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRtORCOeFZI
http://www.biorenewal.org/

———————

The Solution to the Oil Spill off the Gulf Coast
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zr081Aff6GE

update:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7P1SxC83SJs
————————-

Companies and Products:
—————–

DETOX Charcoal cleanup product;
http://www.clearychemical.com/support/label/4853SL.pdf

———————————–

MOP- chicken feather absorbant pyrolysed to remove oil with resulting biochar product:

http://www.i-newswire.com/mop-environmental-files-new-soil/27442
MOP is an aggressive oleophyllic and hydrophobic (oil attracting and water repelling) recycled fiber, manufactured using low-head hydropower, from recycled and fully biodegradable components, MOPs properties are such that it can effectively deal with an oil spill the size of the Exxon Valdez in a 24 hour period, but is just as effective at cleaning up the spill off a garage floor.MOP Environmental Solutions, Inc
http://www.mopenvironmental.com/

—————————–

Sea Sweep.
http://www.thefreelibrary.com/SEA+SWEEP+OIL+SPILL+CLEAN-UP+MATERIAL+CAN+BE+RECYC\LED-a015761698

for more info contact Agua Das 303/524-4339 (email aguadas@onebox.com)

DENVER, Aug. 26 /PRNewswire/ — A new oil spill clean-up material now can be returned to its manufacturer for recycling into a soil builder to complete the environmental loop, Denver-based Sea Sweep Inc. announced today.
Using the age-old process of composting, Sea Sweep now is being converted by a Montana company into a useful by-product.
Considered an innovation in environmental technology, Sea Sweep is used to absorb spills of oil, diesel fuel, gasoline and other hydrocarbon liquids on water or land. It is produced from wood chips or very coarse sawdust heated in a patented process that leaves it thirsty for oil and waterproof.
Under the new composting process, Sea Sweep will recover the used product from its customers and then arrange for it to be composted. The composting process has been tested and proven effective by Petrocomp Inc. of Baker, Mont.
Petrocomp adds manure, fertilizer, trace minerals and water to start the composting process. Microbes, ever present in the environment, attack the oil as the compost heats to 130 degrees Fahrenheit, producing harmless hydrocarbons and the soluble nitrates that result in an excellent soil builder.
The company has been using wood chips and sawdust as bulking agents when it discovered Sea Sweep which, when combined with oil, becomes its own bulking agent.
Petrocomp will serve as Sea Sweep’s initial compost site. Because the Sea Sweep absorbent is sold worldwide, additional composting sites are being identified.
Currently, Petrocomp is distributing Sea Sweep in the oilfields and recovering it after its use to compost it into a useful product. As a result, the company is one of Sea Sweep Inc.’s largest customers.
Sea Sweep Inc. also announced today registration this week of its second public offering by private placement. William Mobeck, Sea Sweep president, said funds realized from the offering will be used for expansion and marketing of its product.
Sea Sweep is the only natural absorbent product on the market that is biodegradable, non-leaching and will not harm birds, wildlife, marine life or shoreline environments.
Because it can be used to absorb many types of hydrocarbons, it can be used by airports, restaurants, commercial garages, construction companies, fire departments, marinas, hazmat teams, on-shore and off- shore oil wells, railroads, refineries, ship owners, tanker terminals and trucking companies.
The product absorbs four to five times its weight of oil. Even when soaked with oil, it will float on water indefinitely and can be recovered for recycling.
Sea Sweep has been listed on the U.S. Coast Guard national response resources inventory. Its use has been approved by maritime and river authorities throughout the world including Greece, England, Malta and Chile.
In 1993, Sea Sweep was recognized by R&D Magazine as one of the top 100 inventions of the year. At the Clean Seas ‘93 International Conference in Malta, it was the only commercial product to receive a Gold Medal “for preservation of a Clean Marine Environment.”
Founders of Sea Sweep Inc., Mobeck, a former Denver oilman, and Thomas Reed, a Colorado School of Mines professor, were inspired by the Exxon Valdez oil spill to create a better product for treating oil spills. Sea Sweep is the result of four years of research financed in part by EPA grants.
-0- 8/26/94

/CONTACT: Bill Kostka of William Kostka & Associates, 303-623-8421/

——————————-

http://inekosorb.com.ua/uk/products/ekolan.shtml
Medication ECOLAN (TY Y 24.6-30572733-005-2004) is based on sorbent (TY. Y 24.1-30572733-003-2003) and related to the class of biodegradative sorbents that could localize oil polluted areas and destruct adsorbed petrochemicals with the help of biological method. Medication has unexampled performance in cleaning polluted areas, could work with a wide range of temperatures (-5…+50c) and doesn’t require gathering and liquidating dangerous waste products from polluted area (according to a decision of sanitary- epidemiological commission of experts dated 30.07.2004 N_05.03.02-04/30953).

HIGH PERFORMANCE OR MEDICATION ECOLAN IS PROVED BY INDUSTRIAL TESTING:

* Tests held at Odessa RDF have acknowledged demolition of localized areas of oil up to 99.4%
* Tests at “Dneprotyre” have shown the decrease of petrochemicals’ concentration in water polluted by black oil in 333 times;
* On 29th of September 2003 medication was used for treatment of oil polluted areas in the result of accident at oil- pipe line “DRUZHBA” on 232 km. Oil spillage on water surface in storage foundation pit was localized as well as the remains of oil spots on the water surface in the river Latoritsa. After having applied medication there haven’t been found any traces of oil or oil firma at water surface. So ECOLAN has destructed oil and oil products and has shown its high performance.
* ECOLAN was successfully used for cleaning the setting basins in cleanout installations in Kyiv (the river Desna); over 6000 kg of water polluted by petrochemicals of different fraction were accumulated in settling basins (contamination’s concentration equals 10g/l). Using 8 kg of sorbent the cleaning process lasted less then 1 hour. Cleaning water test has shown the absence of petrochemicals in settling basins;
* At co- education of Ministry of Emergency situations of Ukraine and “Raf-and-Reddy” 2004 USA medication ECOLAN was used for cleaning the emergency spillage of petrochemicals and was declared as highly performed and ecological mean of destructing oil and oil products’ spillage.

Biochar solutions to cleanup deserve consideration! ...  Monte

Organic Ecology Season Extension

Posted by Jim Riddle, June 4th , 2010.
On May 6, 2010 the University of Minnesota Southwest Research and Outreach Center (SWROC) in Lamberton hosted its first Season Extension Day, drawing over 90 interested participants. Invited speakers included U of MN faculty and growers and covered topics related to extended season high tunnel and passive greenhouse fruit and vegetable production. Three of the presentations are posted here: a review of the 2009 season of the SWROC high tunnel; soil and fertility management for high tunnels; and growing raspberries in high tunnels.
View some of presentations from the Season Extension Day: Soil Fertility in High Tunnels by Dr. Carl Rosen, High Tunnel Raspberry Research by Steve Poppe, and SWROC High Tunnel:First Season Review and Lessons by Kelley Belina
For more information on high tunnels and extended season production contact Kelley Belina at the SWROC, 507-752-7372.

Hines Farm Spring Activities

Hines Farm Spring 2010 Activities - 250 Tons of Compost Turning, Giant Miscanthus and Jerusalem Artichoke Growing, Gardening, Landscaping ...
Large Version of Photo Collage

YouTube - Sunny Pine Farm 1

May 31, 2010 — Permaculture Agroforestry Part 1 - This is the culmination of our series on Agroforestry and Permaculture Systems, a guided tour by Michael Pilarski, Skeeter of Friends of the Trees Society.

Sunny Pine Farm part 2

May 31, 2010 — This is the culmination of our series on Agroforestry and Permaculture Systems, a guided tour by Michael Pilarski, Skeeter of Friends of the Trees Society. Here in this two part video we visit a project that has been in production for 14 years. The project was started by Skeeter and 5 years ago transferred to a family operating a medicinal herb producing business. It is very interesting to see how plants, exotic and native have adapted into a system unique for climate, soils and guidance from the farmers.

Midwest Renewable Energy Fair

The Energy Fair
The Nation's Premier Energy Education Event
21st Annual Energy Fair June 18-20, 2010 at ReNew the Earth Institute, 7558 Deer Rd., Custer, WI.
Friday, June 18 9 am to 7 pm
Saturday, June 19 9 am to 7 pm
Sunday, June 20 9 am to 5 pm
Advance Energy Fair tickets, Home Tour tickets, Mass transit bus tickets and Reservations for Back 40 Camping are available HERE.
Click HERE for the Workshop Schedule.
Click HERE for a list of all the exhibitors at the Fair!
Click HERE for a map layout of the Fair!

Noam Chomsky: "The Center Cannot Hold: Rekindling the Radical Imagination"

Listen/Watch May 31, 2010

Or choose a file format below:

Listen	Watch
Real Audio Stream MP3 Download More audio formats	Real Video Stream MPEG-4 Video Download MPEG-4 Video Torrent

World-renowned political dissident and linguist Noam Chomsky, professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, author of over a hundred books. He spoke recently in New York addressing more than a thousand people at the Left Forum. He began by discussing the case of Joseph Andrew Stack who crashed his small plane into an office building in Austin, Texas, hitting an IRS office, committing suicide. [includes rush transcript]


Chomsky speech is very hard hitting on current moods and state of affairs, cutting through normal BS and relating to lessons learned from history!  worth anyone's time to listen! ... Monte

Earth Blog: EARTH MEANDERS: United States of Ecocide: Spilling and Consuming Way to Oblivion

By Dr. Glen Barry, Ecological Internet
Earth Meanders come from Earth's Newsdesk

A great, free nation remains immobilized in the face of ecological collapse

The United States of America is an epic experiment, as despite great accomplishments and numerous imperfections, we share a long history of constantly striving to improve our union. As Americans settle in for Memorial Day to remember veterans of all stripes – from great wars of world defense to more recent military adventurism – it is appropriate to consider what the current Gulf Oil Spill says about the American way of life. Plainly, our addiction to oil and consumption in general threatens to destroy regional and global ecosystems – the water, air, land and oceans –upon which Americans, humanity and all species depend upon for habitat and life.

America is truly exceptional. Yet it is not because of our materially excessive lifestyles, as best demonstrated by our wide girths and ample posteriors. There is more to America than consumption. Our greatness is primarily due to our wavering, imperfect yet unique commitment to freedom and liberty. Over two hundred years ago a just revolution was fought asserting individual liberties from monarchial authoritarianism. The principles of freedom and liberty were a gift to the world. This is what truly has set us apart. And despite two decades of consistent roll-backs in civil and human rights, Americans remain for now free peoples to prosper or expire.

America has and continues to face many challenges – repudiating slavery, enfranchising most, world wars – and most recently the inevitable slowdown of economic growth as speculative, industrial capitalism runs its course. America has enjoyed for awhile super-sized living and grown to be what it is based upon liquidating ecosystems. We have progressed to the point where regional ecosystems are collapsing – most obviously in the Gulf Coast, but throughout the vast country as ecosystems are dying. America now faces our most difficult and profound test ever, coming to terms with our deeply ecologically unsustainable lifestyles, and committing to national and global ecological sustainability.

Clearly the American way of life has been built upon liquidating our own and foreign natural life-giving ecosystems to access resources for consumption. To equate mowing ancient forests, dumping waste into water, over-fishing oceans, polluting the atmosphere, and the pervasive toxic chemical cocktail with progress and development is absurd. It is entirely possible that oil deep undersea and within our shared Earth was not meant to be drilled, much less burnt. America must directly face our profound dependence upon oil and destruction of natural ecosystems as the basis of our economy; or our country will collapse, many if not all will needlessly suffer and prematurely die, and a livable Earth may cease to exist.

The oil spilling endlessly into the Gulf of Mexico – one of America’s most rich ecosystems –shows clearly Americans of all types will commit to ecological sustainability or our free country will cease to exist. Marshes and rivers and forests and fish are far more than resources – they and all natural ecosystems provide for humanity’s habitat and existence upon Earth. The American way of life must be updated by what Ecology – the radical science – teaches us about limits to growth and requirements to sustain the biosphere. And to reflect moral outrage that as we continue to literally stuff ourselves and over-develop to death, two billion people live worldwide on under $2/day, 800 million without access to clean water. Collapsing ecosystems will almost certainly be used as the pretext for some sort of more authoritarian political system.

The American dream and way of life is built upon ecocide – willful murder of the environment. Such ecocidal behavior is problematic not only because we are literally eating Earth to death, but also because Americans use so much more than their fair share of the surplus natural capital, relative to the family of nations, than can be done sustainably. It is deeply troubling – bordering on evil – that 4% of the world’s population consumes 25% of its oil. And now sadly the rest of the world is copying America’s conspicuous over-consumption as a way of life. In an over-populated Earth plagued by inequitable consumption, clearly there has to be more meaning to life than having more stuff, including first meeting all humanity’s basic needs.

The resources necessary for all the gadgets, cars, energy and consumption found in the American dream are largely being taken at the point of gun by the U.S. military, and through neo-colonial dependency arrangements between U.S. business and resource owners. 911 was direct blowback from several decades of such behavior. It is time to stop thinking in terms of tribal nationalism and embrace the human family; as ecological challenges including forest loss, water scarcity, ocean decline, air pollution, soil depletion, nitrogen saturation and biodiversity loss threaten to destroy all nations’ peoples. How many more U.S. soldiers must kill and die needlessly in foreign lands to support these inequities and unsustainability?

Let us buttress America’s commitment to true freedom and liberty with equal devotion to equity, justice and global ecological sustainability. Future American and global ecological sustainability looks less urban, more organic; simple but quality lives; less government, more community, and dedication to protecting and restoring ecosystems. It is possible and crucial for all our shared survival to live simply, laugh often, and love deeply as we lead deeply fulfilling lives within the context of a healthy and vibrant environment, and a steady state economy which can last forever.

It is well past time to show American resolve and commitment and get the damn oil leak capped. This is an unprecedented ecological emergency that portends the future. There should be millions of Americans streaming to partake in skimming oil and cleaning what comes ashore. This is our task, our job, our life, our future, our country, our Earth and our ecology at stake. Further, I would like to take this opportunity to call for criminal investigations of BP and the U.S. government’s oil departments, for the immediate resignation of Ken Salazar as Secretary of Interior, and for a permanent global ban to ecocidal offshore oil drilling.

Ecological Internet recently declared a planetary ecological emergency[1] based upon overwhelming new ecological science indicating Earth is at or near the tipping point, and key global ecosystems and life-support systems are failing. All true Americans and global citizens are urged to dramatically reduce their personal consumption and to commit to massively reducing their personal use of oil. And the U.S. government must cease to be an oil oligarchy, divorce itself from this Earth destroying industry, and stop waging war to feed its oil addiction. Failure on either account may justly lead to the next great American Revolution: a people’s power Earth Revolution on behalf of Earth, all her life, and the human family.

###

Dr. Glen Barry is the President and Founder of Ecological Internet (EI). He is recognized internationally by the environmental movement as a leading global visionary, environmental policy critic and public intellectual committed to communicating the severity of global ecological crises and actively organizing with others sufficient responses. He is an independent political ecologist, a writer of essays and blogs, and a computer specialist and technology researcher. See http://www.ecoearth.info/ and http://www.facebook.com/ecointernet for more information

Panoramic Photo of Ducky's Lagoon Harbor On Bike Night - May 27, 2010 - Roof View

"THE ORIGINAL BIKE NIGHT LOCATION"
http://www.duckyslagoon.com/

Panoramic Photo of Ducky's Lagoon Parking Lot On Bike Night - May 27, 2010 - Road View

"THE ORIGINAL BIKE NIGHT LOCATION"
http://www.duckyslagoon.com/

Panoramic Photo of Ducky's Lagoon Parking Lot On Bike Night - May 27, 2010 - Roof View

"THE ORIGINAL BIKE NIGHT LOCATION"
http://www.duckyslagoon.com/

SIMPLE WAY TO MAKE BIOCHAR! - Biochar in a Food Forest Setting

I love these videos on a biochar food forest and how to make biochar the simple way! ... Monte