Source: Washington Post
May he plow the Lord’s fields in heaven
Dave Brandt was probably the longest running no-till farmer in the state; he'd been running his land no-till since 1971. He experimented with fertilizers, cover crops, and different irrigation techniques and he'd been doing all of that for a very long time.
The guy was an institution all on his own; look at this.
- The “A” profile in his soil is now 47 inches deep compared to less than 6 inches in 1971 and acts like a giant sponge for water infiltration and retention.
- From 1971 through 1989 David used an average of 150-250 pounds of nitrogen fertilizer per acre to grow his corn crops. After adding peas and radishes as a cover crop mix, he cut his nitrogen needs in half and was able to get it down to 125 pounds per acre.
- When he added multiple species and became more aggressive with his cover crop mixes, he was able to achieve an additional drop in applied fertility. His starter fertilizer is now just 2 lbs of N, 4 lbs of P, and 5 lbs of K. His corn crop now only requires 20-30 lbs of N throughout the entire growing season. He requires no fertility for his soybeans, relying on fertility gained solely through his cover crops. He uses only 40 lbs of 10 N – 10 P – 10 K for his small grains.
- Ten years ago (source study published 2019) David stopped using any fungicides and insecticides. This occurred at a time when fungicide and insecticide use has increased significantly with the average commodity farmer.
- Four years ago he stopped using any seed treatment, including neonicotinoids.
- His cash crop yields have been increasing by an average of 5% annually for the past 5-6 years, with far less fertilizer and no fungicides, insecticides or seed treatment.
- What started as a basic heavy clay soils when David purchased the farm in 1971 have been officially re-classified by Ohio State University soil scientists as a highly fertile silty loam soil.
For years, the people of the Kitasoo/Xai’xais First Nation watched over their waters and waited. They had spent nearly two decades working with Canada’s federal government to negotiate protections for Kitasu Bay, an area off the coast of British Columbia that was vulnerable to overfishing.
But the discussions never seemed to go anywhere. First, they broke down over pushback from the fishing industry, then over a planned oil tanker route directly through Kitasoo/Xai’xais waters.
“We were getting really frustrated with the federal government. They kept jumping onboard and then pulling out,” says Douglas Neasloss, the chief councillor and resource stewardship director of the Kitasoo/Xai’xais First Nation. “Meanwhile, we’d been involved in marine planning for 20 years – and we still had no protected areas.”
Instead, the nation watched as commercial overfishing decimated the fish populations its people had relied on for thousands of years.
Nestled on the west coast of Swindle Island, approximately 500km north of Vancouver, Kitasu Bay is home to a rich array of marine life: urchins and abalone populate the intertidal pools, salmon swim in the streams and halibut take shelter in the deep waters. In March, herring return to spawn in the eelgrass meadows and kelp forests, nourishing humpback whales, eagles, wolves and bears.
“Kitasu Bay is the most important area for the community – that’s where we get all of our food,” Neasloss says. “It’s one of the last areas where you still get a decent spawn of herring.”
So in December 2021, when the Department of Fisheries and Oceans withdrew from discussions once again, the nation decided to act. “My community basically said, ‘We’re tired of waiting. Let’s take it upon ourselves to do something about it,’” Neasloss says.
What they did was unilaterally declare the creation of a new marine protected area (MPA). In June 2022, the nation set aside 33.5 sq km near Laredo Sound as the new Gitdisdzu Lugyeks (Kitasu Bay) MPA – closing the waters of the bay to commercial and sport fishing.
It is a largely unprecedented move. While other marine protected areas in Canada fall under the protection of the federal government through the Oceans Act, Kitasu Bay is the first to be declared under Indigenous law, under the jurisdiction and authority of the Kitasoo/Xai’xais First Nation.
Pictured: "In some ways, I hope someone challenges us" … the Kitasoo/Xai’xais stewardship authority.
Although they did not wait for government approval, the Kitasoo did consult extensively: the declaration was accompanied by a draft management plan, finalised in October after three months of consultation with industry and community stakeholders. But the government did not provide feedback during that period, according to Neasloss, beyond an acknowledgment that it had received the plan...
Approximately 95% of British Columbia is unceded: most First Nations in the province of British Columbia never signed treaties giving up ownership of their lands and waters to the crown. This puts them in a unique position to assert their rights and title, according to Neasloss, who hopes other First Nations will be inspired to take a similarly proactive approach to conservation...
Collaboration remains the goal, and Neasloss points to a landmark agreement between the Haida nation and the government in 1988 to partner in conserving the Gwaii Haanas archipelago, despite both parties asserting their sovereignty over it. A similar deal was made in 2010 for the region’s 3,400 sq km Gwaii Haanas national marine conservation area.
“They found a way to work together, which is pretty exciting,” says Neasloss. “And I think there may be more Indigenous protected areas that are overlaid with something else.”
-via The Guardian, 5/3/23
Wow!
Wednesday May 24.
Cows have regional accents
MooooooooooooÖ
Allow us to broaden your minds for one moment. We know what you're thinking—I love cows, but I simply have to know: do they moo in different accents to one another? It is a great question, and you would be far from the first person to have posed yourself such a query. Well, the good news is here this Wednesday, May 24, as we have that very answer for you. They're chunky, lovely, and unrelenting milk machines: and now we can answer, definitively, whether #cows commoonicate (sorry) in different regional accents. Don't believe us? Well, we refer you to Exhibit A:
Exhibit A.
Yes! I’ve always believed that there was potential to c. robusta !
Using new farming and processing techniques, Nguyen, 48, has produced some of the first robusta coffee accepted by international judges as high-quality. His beans, which he sells for three times the market price of regular robusta, deliver brews with a clean taste and none of the bitter, rubbery flavor that have typically relegated robusta to instant coffee, he said. He’s found fans in Vietnam, France and Japan, and is part of a small but buzzy movement to remake the reputation of robusta.
And the article continues to become more interesting, including agronomic takes.
And if you want to see the ad, click here.
(Personal aside: I drink both dairy and plant-based milks, and found the ad quite funny.)
The national climate watchdog group Food & Water Watch on Monday unveiled a new interactive multimedia resource where users can learn more about "false narratives" regarding carbon capture and storage, an unproven technology pushed by fossil fuel companies eager to avoid what scientists and energy experts say is the actual solution to the climate emergency: Ending the burning of coal, gas, and oil to bring down carbon emissions.
Visitors to the group's new "resource hub" first encounter a title card reading, "The Carbon Capture Solution" before the last word is crossed out and replaced with "Scam."
The site, titled Carbon Capture Scam, includes video storytelling, expert testimonials, analysis, infographics, and other content that help explain to readers why carbon capture and storage (CCS) is simply "a lifeline for the fossil fuel industry" rather than a real solution that will reduce carbon emissions in the atmosphere and planetary heating.
(Link to the image above....)
And just a reminder for U.S. readers, the cost of even failed investments by power utilities will be passed on to consumers.
When your usual seasonal dishes become “vintage,” not unlike my wardrobe. But, yes, if you’re unfamiliar with rhubarb, try these.
We need a remake of 1978′s “Attack of the Killer Tomatoes” based on this theme.
In this photograph, taken April 8, 2016, scientists Joth Davis, left, and Brian Allen of the Puget Sound Restoration Fund hold kelp that naturally grew on a buoy line in Washington's Hood Canal. An experiment will test whether a seaweed farm can take up carbon dioxide from surrounding waters to combat ocean acidification. (AP Photo/Manuel Valdes)
Offshore from Vancouver Island, B.C., a team hauls up a line laden with meter-long fronds of sugar kelp (Saccharina latissima), a floppy brown seaweed with crinkled edges. The harvest from Cascadia Seaweed, a kelp farming company founded in 2019, has over the years made its way into a seaweed-enriched “sea spice” condiment mix and a host of trial snack products including protein puffs and tortilla chips. Now the company is focused on processing its seaweed into animal feed and soil additives — anything that will help kelp make the world a better place.
But.... and this has been my concern for some time...
Ecosystem impacts can be complicated. A dense kelp forest, say, in a spot where one did not previously exist can affect the light and nutrients in the surrounding water — not necessarily for the better. Kelp could in theory shade out other organisms below, for example. Intentionally growing huge quantities of seaweed in a massive global scale-up could have far-reaching negative impacts on ocean chemistry and the food chain. And growing large quantities of a single crop could raise the specter of monoculture problems — on land, monocultures pursued for high profit margins have notoriously proven problematic for biodiversity and resistance against extreme weather or disease.
One of the most intuitive concerns about seaweed farming revolves around the risks presented by foreign imports. In Hawaii, for example, an Asian red seaweed was brought in for aquaculture in the 1970s; it has since spread several kilometers from where it was introduced, with escapees smothering some coral reefs. Likewise in the Philippines, says Doumeizel, the use of foreign farm spores (called seed by the industry) drove down local seaweeds. “They did everything we would not do today,” says Doumeizel. “They took a seaweed that was not native and grew it as fast as they could.”
I pointed this out in a Discord server I'm in and thought Id share here:
Bob Iger announced that Disney is going to absorb Hulu, and Hulu will no longer exist next year. All shows will move to the Disney+ app.
Disney also announced they were going to remove shows and movies periodically from their streaming services.
I believe both of these moves are because of the Writers Strike.
Disney knows its going to lose the strike. There is too much public support. Specifically, the WGA is going to win writers getting more residuals from streaming.
So if Disney takes shows off of streaming, they dont have to pay the writers the residuals.
They are going to use excuses like "not enough funding for the server capacity" or "not enough views to warrent keeping the show". These are BULLSHIT. Its all greed. Its only GREED.
Pay attention to what happens in the following weeks.
And keep supporting the writers' strike.
This is similar to what happened with HBO - new owners merged two streaming services, and all of a sudden there wasn't enough server capacity for all the shows somehow. A total lie.
Time to start downloading EVERY Hulu show. Hoist the colors high.
And yell at your congresscritters about antitrust laws.
Download everything that isn't a major franchise. If its name isn't Marvel, Star Wars or The Simpsons, assume it's getting canned and get a copy in as high quality as you can store. Eventually your copy could be the only one.
This.
This is especially true for the weird stuff you’ve never heard anyone else mention. Lost media is a tragedy regardless of what it is.
But don't take a random tumblr's word for it, here's a verified source
Foreign investment in U.S. cropland has nearly tripled in the past decade, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) data.
The total cropland controlled by foreign interests in 2020 was 10.9 million acres, up from 4.1 million acres in 2010.
This increase has been largely driven by foreign-owned wind companies signing long-term leases on a large number of acres, according to the USDA. However, “the acres actually utilized by said companies are very few due to the small footprint of the wind towers erected on the land,” a USDA report said
I saw this too late to post in ‘22, but it is 13 May once again.
A-dae Romero-Briones is the Director of Programs at the First Nations Development Institute, an organization committed to strengthening tribal assets and helping Native Communities restore and retain their culture. First Nations supports tribes and Native communities as they build sustainable food systems that improve health, strengthen food security and increase their control over Native agriculture and food systems. On this episode of “Food Lab Talk,” Michiel speaks with A-dae about the role of community in addressing complex systems change, why the term “food system” is not a monolith, and how food systems can take radically different forms depending on their historical, cultural and societal context.
Seattle Public Library is doing this awesome program called Books Unbanned that allows teens and young adults (ages 13-26) access to their collection of e-books and e-audiobooks from anywhere in the USA. All you need to do is fill out a simple form and you get their Books Unbanned card. Please share this information far and wide. I know they're not the only ones to have done this, but the more the merrier!
Shared!
Hell, yes, INTPs.
Saw this on my Quora digest. In the event you have the misfortune of becoming involved with one of us, this may help:
Grace Holmes · FollowENFJ 5y
Why are INTPs so difficult to read?
INTP's aren't hard to understand, as long as you know the following:
1: An INTP will not talk while thinking.
2: An INTP will not listen while thinking.
3: An INTP will not show expression while thinking.
Any exceptions to this will be when they are stressed. When an INTP thinks, the entire world stops around them while they struggle to connect the new pieces given to them. This may happen instantly and you won't notice it, or it might take a long time. They will delay answering your question while they think over something, leading to long stretches of silence. They may be juggling several threads of thought that they are patiently unraveling, all while they stare blankly into space without acknowledging you.
If an INTP seems hard to read, it's probably... because they're thinking. And they think a lot. Their process is slow but thorough, and once they've thought through every piece in the puzzle, they've memorized every piece and every place, leading to instant recall. No wonder it takes them so long.
Although they are extremely logical, this doesn't translate into an obviously rigid or cold personality. The INTP's I've met have been gentle and have a desire to connect with others. Their social persona may be stunted; they may miss social cues or carelessly debate a topic (which makes all the F's in the room cringe), leading to unpopularity. However, they are devoted to their core values, and they strive to live within them logically which makes them excellent and caring friends. They light up at the chance for an intellectually stimulating conversation. If they feel an intellectual connection, this can lead to an emotional connection where they may reveal these values to you.
Once you understand someone’s values and priorities in life, it becomes much easier to read them in a given situation.
74.8K viewsView 1,115 upvotesView 19 shares
Upvote1.1K3719
Oh, and in the event you are an INTP, do not return a love letter from your paramour with their spelling corrected. Bad form. And yes, I did that....once. (She did eventually marry me anyway.)
In Senegal, the national dish of thieboudienne is entwined in the country’s history and culture. It’s a rich dish of fish, rice and vegetables that literally brings people together - traditionally eaten in communal fashion around a single dish.
But the preferred species for the dish is white grouper, and the fishery has collapsed in the face of aggressive fishing by locals and foreign poaching. And there are few other fish to turn to, as overfishing has “greatly diminished” other species in Senegal, where one in six people work in the fisheries sector, according to a report from the United States Agency for International Development.
Overfishing like that which has threatened thieboudienne is seen across the planet.