My project part 2

[Rick Stillwagon]

The previous post explains in overview what I have been trying to accomplish.  I want an economical, sustainable, and self-contained system.  Not only food production but heating and powering my home and business as well.

 

The greenhouse/aquaponics unit is my experiment and will eventually tie into everything on my property.  The biomass boiler will provide steam that will be plumbed to all buildings (just like they did in the old days) for heat, and will be intermittantly used at high pressure to generate electricity to charge batteries and operate the machinery that makes the fuel for the boiler (hammermill and pelletmill.)  I want to be, and show others we can be, more self-sufficient.

 

My business model is to be able to, by example, show and teach others how to be independant. By producing what we consume we will have a neutral impact on society economically, and a positive impact socially.  But it wont work to tell people this. They have to see it and "discover" it for themselves. Guilting others into change isnt working.  There has to be a fiscal, or physical benefit.  Saving money on their food and energy bills will motivate a freat amount of people, if it isnt to laborious.

 

Recently, in Tacoma WA, a group was given a grant of $300,000.00 from one of the founders of Microsft to grow food for the food banks in the empty city lots.  Tacoma then matched the grant with another for $100,000.00 and a renewable grant for $80,000.00 to hire a manager to oversee the project.  This is a great deal of money for a very seasonal project.  I think it would have been much better spent on a project such as an aquaponic installation that would provide food on a year round basis rather than for a couple of months.

 

Until there is an example of a local installation in the Northwest, or a similar climate that is economically viable, it will be difficult to promote the idea for such project grants.  Through the efforts here in this community I hope to be able to learn and share a method of self-reliance and food production that will help to alleviate some of the economic conditions we experience in our area as well as anywhere else it may help.