New Year’s Resolutions
It’s that time of year! The time we imagine the year to come, think about bringing our dreams closer to tangible reality, and resolve to take action.
This year, while we think about working out and calling home more often and the myriad actions we plan to enrich our lives, I encourage you to take a moment to think big.
How does your life and your goals fit within the world?
We all share this world; it’s smaller than we think and growing more connected every year. What impact does your life have on our beautiful, fragile environment? On the opportunities and well-being of other people? These are big questions to ask! But they belong to all of us.
Together, if we become aware of our footprint in the world, together, if we choose to walk more gently in the world, we can build a truly sustainable future. A future with clean water, clean air, and clean energy. A future where all people have safe access to healthy food and water. A future where the environment is healthy and whole, full of thriving biodiversity.
Each of us plays a part, building up or breaking down the integrity of that whole. How do your resolutions help build a better world for yourself, your family, and the world?
It all starts with asking the question.
It is an act of courage to open your eyes and take a frank look around. So today, in the reflections on the eve of the New Year, I ask you - what are your resolutions for your health and the health of your planet?
Urban Agriculture
What is urban agriculture?
Simply put, urban agriculture is cultivating plant growth, including food and natural medicinal plants, within urban landscapes. Doing this creates a series of critical impacts that support social and environmental justice.
In short, urban agriculture is a critical component of social and environmental justice which provides the city with green community spaces, fresh healthy food, wildlife habitat, and potential economic growth.
Thinking Local Part II: Wrapping up Bioreactors, Introducing Urban Agriculture
A vision of clean water in the Chesapeake Bay watershed
Vegetation growing over an installed bioreactor in Maryland
Bioreactor installation at Ka’anapali Golf Course
Soil Biochar in West Maui
Ridge to Reefs’ roots are working the Chesapeake Bay watershed. As we grew in capacity, we realized that the same problems existed in coastal systems around the world; and that the same principle of local natural solutions would work there too. Over the years we’ve targeted our efforts to where we could do the greatest good. These days, under conditions imposed by Covid-19, we’re relying more on our partners to carry on our work overseas and focusing the efforts of our labor close to home, building on our foundations, back where we started.
Since spring of 2020, we’ve been working with a NFWF Small Watershed Grant award building bioreactors. If you’ve been following our social media this month, you’re well familiar with bioreactors and other natural water filtration structures by now (if you’ve missed these updates, go ahead and follow us on social media - we have more exciting content coming!).
For a quick recap, bioreactors are one of the many local natural solutions we build to clean up watersheds. First, we identify a source of problematic water; say a field is fertilized, and when it rains some of that fertilizer washes into the river or leaches into groundwater, threatening human health; then continues into the bay, causing all sorts of ecosystem imbalances (harmful algal blooms, unbalancing up the oxygen concentration, threatening fish). It would be great if there was a way to filter out the fertilizer, right? Fortunately, nature has a way of doing that. In short, helpful bacteria naturally found in the soil can consume nitrates from fertilizer and convert it to inert nitrogen gas (that makes up ¾ of the fresh air that we need to breathe)! It’s a remarkably efficient and effective process; the planet has had time to work this stuff out! Our job is to identify where the problem sources of water are coming from, direct this water to a natural filtration system, and hold the runoff water in place long enough for the bacteria to have their feast. Enter the bioreactor!
A bioreactor is essentially a lined trench filled with woodchips and various soil media. First, we put on our boots and dig out a trench. This trench only needs to be about four feet deep and are typically 30’ wide x 100’ long to treat 100 acres of cropland! We add a liner so the water doesn’t leach out into the soil while it’s being filtered, and fill the liner with biochar, which is a special kind of charcoal made under specific oxygen-depleted conditions. This charcoal filter is excellent at removing phosphorous content, for those of you out there keeping score - and it also helps the beneficial nitrifying and denitrifying bacteria grow; a win-win for water quality!
Bioreactors (which we now know is a lined drainage ditch filled with wood chips, biochar, and safe helpful bacteria) are an established practice; Ridge to Reefs has done a lot of pioneering work making them more efficient and piloting applications for creatively solving water quality problems. We’ve built them and other natural filtration systems around the world in places that need a locally-made natural, safe, self-sustaining water treatment system. Check out some of our work with bioreactors on our projects page.
Next month we’re featuring urban agriculture! If you missed the social media updates this month give us a follow at the links below, and don’t forget to subscribe to our newsletter for more news about taking care of the people and the planet delivered straight to your inbox. Stay well and drink plenty of water! Nature’s got you covered.
Thinking Local
Now that our long-awaited Covid-19 delayed field work in Maui is wrapping up, our team is returning home. Like everyone this year, we’re turning our attention to our own backyard - for us, that’s Sykesville, Maryland!
Here at Ridge to Reefs, we are always committed to building resilience and restoring the environment right here, in the communities where we live and work. While our projects continue around the world through supporting our in-country partners, these days we’re also turning our attention to the most we can achieve in our own backyard. We’ve got some big sustainability and resilience goals!
From now through the beginning of the New Year, we’ll be highlighting local projects on our social media (maybe with some breaks here and there to keep you up to date on any new news). We’ll be talking about natural water filtration, urban agriculture, and creative local natural solutions to ecosystem problems. Follow us on social media to tune in for exciting updates about our work in Baltimore, the Chesapeake Bay, and learn things you can do right at home in your backyard. Thanks for sticking with us - stay safe!
Maui Diaries - Day 15: Last Day in Paradise
Oct 15th, 2020
Today I (Kelly) am leaving Maui, while Phal and Paul are staying behind for a few more weeks to wrap up several of our projects. Since I am the resident blog writer, the Maui Diaries series will come to a close for now. In this final post, I will highlight some of the lessons learned from this trip, from the perspective of someone relatively new to both the environmental nonprofit sector and Hawaii:
1. Despite living in an electronic world, “paperwork” continues to stall progress. We unexpectedly had to wait several weeks after arriving for agencies to grant us permission to our field site, although we have already been working there for several years. We are still waiting patiently, with our contractor ready to pounce at any moment. Due to this delay our team will likely need to work over the weekend and stay longer on Maui than previously anticipated to get the job done. (Good thing the guys didn’t buy return tickets - this is exactly the reason why!)
2. Relationships are everything. We are fortunate to have partners across the Hawaiian Islands with a diverse range of skills, networks, and resources. Without their help, it would be far more difficult to navigate the politics of communicating with various agencies to get paperwork signed, for example. Of course, connecting with passionate people with shared values also greatly enhances this work. It is enjoyable and inspiring to collaborate (and hang out) with local watershed coordinators, farmers, researchers, and various gamechangers.
3. Ecosystem restoration is challenging. Especially when you (and even your local partners!) have no idea what the native landscape actually looked like. Maui has been so drastically altered by human development, invasive species and legacy agriculture that its “natural state” is an enigma. Climate change impacts, such as increasing temperatures, dryness, and fire risk, exacerbate this challenge. Our team is experimenting to see how the landscape responds to invasive species removal — only time will tell. We are leaving the island with the task of doing lots of research and connecting with agroforestry, restoration, and permaculture experts from around the world to help us figure out how to bring life back to Maui’s mountains.
4. Maui is beautiful! It’s no wonder that 250,000 tourists a day were present pre-COVID across the Hawaiian islands. The backdrop to every occasion is either a radiant blue ocean or rolling mountains (and in many cases, both, since Lana’i and Moloka’i are directly across from West Maui). The stars are clear, the nights are cool and refreshing, and your chances of seeing UFOs are fairly high, apparently (I saw a beautiful sparkly comet pretty close to Earth by the beach one evening). The variety of ecosystems at varying elevations is a treat for ecology enthusiasts, and the snorkeling and scuba diving is simply delightful.
All in all, I look forward to returning to this island to continue progress on restoring native forests and increasing the water quality for coral reefs and humans alike. I do wonder how the vibe will change when tourism picks back up — it is a unique opportunity to see Maui relatively vacant, and as an introvert with high sensitivity to poorly behaved tourists, I am not necessarily excited to see its usual form. However, I recognize the importance of having oases for people all over the world to rest and rejuvenate, to enjoy life and appreciate beautiful scenery. I only hope that local businesses can help promote more sustainable practices such as zero waste or using locally grown ingredients (the slightly overpriced but admirable restaurant Moku Roots has this down!); and that visitors choose to support ecotourism, farm tours, and cultural education over mainstream tourist traps.
Mahalo for following the Maui Diaries series! Be sure to follow us on social media and sign up for the Ridge to Reefs email newsletter for project updates and quarterly newsletters.
Maui Diaries - Day 13: Challenging Restoration
Paul Sturm and Wesley Crile sit upon bare soil and assess the fire damage.
Oct 13th, 2020
Remember that wildfire we mentioned in Maui Diaries - Day 3? Well, it turns out that fire happened on one of our potential project sites which we visited today, along the ridgeline of the Honokowai Valley. Though fire is a natural phenomenon in many ecosystems, this is not the case on Maui. Fire hazards are a relatively new issue, made worse by what our local partners are experiencing as extended dry seasons coupled with rising temperatures. If the forests were healthy and the soil was sufficiently moist, perhaps these fires would not be such a problem. However, many areas have suffered major declines in soil health and biodiversity over the years. Erosion is a major issue due to a lack of organic matter and native vegetation; and across the island, native trees are hard to come by, while invasives such as eucalyptus and strawberry guava grow like weeds.
So, what exactly happened to the native landscape of Maui? In this particular location, the culprit is one hundred years of pineapple farming. Both pineapple and sugarcane were major export crops in the 1900s; they dominated the agriculture market, taking up thousands of acres of what we can only assume used to be native forests. When the pineapple and sugarcane land was decommissioned, this land was left fallow, depleted of nutrients and organic matter, and lacking the vitality needed to restore itself to a natural, pre-farming condition. Today, in these areas you can clearly see remnants of the black plastic drip-tape and scraps the farmers used in irrigation and weed control. As we walked up the ridge, this plastic was sticking up out of the red, sandy ground in every direction.
Adding to the plastic gloom was the fact that this landscape had been ravaged by fire a few weeks before. The barely-there topsoil was covered in a thin layer of black charcoal, and burnt, small trees lacking vegetation dotted the landscape. It became even spookier as we came across various burnt objects, from bicycles, to Jeeps, an old television, and even the pipes from the nearby reservoir. It was a wasteland.
Burnt jeep at the top of the ridge.
We spent hours on the ridge, brainstorming methods to restore this drastically degraded landscape to somewhat natural conditions. It was difficult for some to conceptualize how this wasteland could possibly be rejuvenated, having been subject to 100 years of pineapple farming and now, wildfires. But deep down we all know the inherent resilience of nature, especially given proper attention and management. It is our dream, and that of many organizations on-island, to establish native or at least non-invasive vegetation along these steep slopes to serve as a gulch buffer. This ecosystem would protect the stream below from excessive sediment input, since tree roots and vegetative barriers hold soil which is otherwise exposed to erosion. We would also alter the hydrology such that water can infiltrate into the landscape, rather than flowing over the mountain in one spot (an artifact of the pineapple days, since these plants require low amounts of water). Of course, this landscape could also provide habitat for birds, pollinators and other native wildlife, which is much needed as development continues and climatic conditions become more extreme.
Wesley Crile dreaming up a solution to restore this degraded landscape.
The landscapes all across Maui, from the shorelines to the mountaintops, have been so drastically altered by development, invasive plants and animals, and agriculture that it is near impossible to understand what the “native” landscape actually looked like; let alone how we would get it there. What we do know is that nature left alone typically finds the most efficient way to restore itself to equilibrium. That equilibrium may not always end up exactly how it used to be, prior to human disturbance or management; however, we are confident that given the right amount of attention, expertise, funding*, and time, these landscapes can be restored to a healthy state for future generations to enjoy.
*If you are passionate about protecting native landscapes from climate change and human impacts, consider donating to Ridge to Reefs today. We really appreciate your support!
Maui Diaries: Day 11 - Ohana
Maui has suffered far less COVID-19 cases than many parts of the world, and in the past few days of interacting with locals, we have perhaps discovered a large reason why. Polynesian cultures are inherently family-oriented. In Hawaii, even those not directly related to you are considered Ohana, or family. Islands are uniquely isolated places, so it makes more sense for people to stick together than to push each other away. Of course, I think we can all agree that community-oriented societies which look out for their neighbors would be more enjoyable.
These values are in sharp contrast to those of the mainland United States where over time people have become less concerned and connected with the individuals in their community and around them. “Individualistic” culture can be understood more simply as “selfish.” At home, people are typically not that concerned with the health and safety of people outside their immediate family or social circles. This is illustrated by the downright refusal by many people to wear masks in public, which is thankfully mitigated by county and State laws to require them. I can only imagine how native Hawaiians perceive the fact that so many elderly people were disproportionately affected by this disease, having been insulated in nursing homes. Elders are especially revered in polynesian and many indigenous cultures; to let their wisdom be lost due to improper management of a life-threatening disease is in many ways disgraceful.
At Ridge to Reefs, we have the privilege to interface with cultures on many islands. While every location has their political and social differences, a common thread among the islands of Puerto Rico, Hawaii, American Samoa and Palau is that you look out for and take care of your human family. Heritage extends beyond the immediate bloodline; sharing land, space, and resources is reason enough for people to get along, to respect one another, to keep one another safe. While the mainland may seem too large, with too many people to possibly care for everyone, this is perhaps an irresponsible way to look at life. What would happen if we treated every single person with the same level of respect and care? Would people be going hungry, suffering in homelessness? Would COVID-19 have spread so rapidly and impacted so many people?
We may not be able to answer these questions in reality, but they should give us pause. There is most definitely an opportunity at this time in history for us to redefine our values, to extend our generosity to all those in our human family, to take safety precautions for the sake of others rather than only ourselves. The same principles apply to environmental conservation and sustainability. What if we took only as much as we needed? What if we shared more, gave more of ourselves for the greater good of our communities and beyond? What if we thought about where our waste goes, and made changes to our daily habits to reduce our impact on other people, animals, and the climate?
If we did all that and more, the world may indeed be a better place. For now, may we encourage each other to keep dreaming of a fair future; and to make as many changes in our daily lives, and in the lives of others, that we reasonably can. Change starts with the individual and spreads outward. Compassion and care are perhaps more contagious than the disease that has sent our world reeling. Practice makes perfect, so what better time than now to start seeing and treating one another as we truly are: Ohana, one human family.