Topic Tag: aquaponics

Project Kamp has essentially been my dream project for years so I am going to do my best to organize my thoughts into sections here.  I have been studying and researching these things for a long time so I would hope at the very least they would be useful in the conversations about this project. #1 - Aquaponics: - Aquaponics is a combination of Hydroponics (growing plants in water without soil) and Aquaculture (growing fish in tanks).  Basically, you feed the fish (ornamental goldfish or edible tilapia, catfish, perch, etc.) and they excrete waste.  Bacteria converts the waste into nitrogen which is absorbed by the plants as fertilizer and removed from the water.  The plants grow quickly and return fresh water to the fish where the cycle begins again. Advantages of Aquaponics- - uses 95+% less water than traditional agriculture (water is recycled, it is only lost through transpiration and evaporation) - no soil requirements, no weeding, plants grow faster (do not need to spend energy on root growth looking for nutrients), - vertical aquaponics can drastically increase square footage by growing plants vertically in towers. - harvest fish! condensed fish waste fertilizer for use in typical garden. - very "hands-off" I have been working with aquaponics for 5 years now and studying it for even longer.  I have my own mini-greenhouse in my backyard here in Chicago where i have managed to keep Blue-Nile Tilapia and many plants and herbs alive through our tough winters (-20f/-28c). More importantly, I have developed an aquaponics farm concept inside of two shipping containers which I am currently submitting a proposal to Chicago Cook County to adapt as a career path for the underprivileged (homeless, prisoners, unemployed, etc).  While working on this I have developed quite a few cheaper alternatives to the <i>already</i> inexpensive hobby of aquaponics.  Resulting in the ability to grow around 1700 plants and 400 tilapia at once in 2 40' shipping containers (16'x40') #2 - Alternative Housing: - My first round of searching brought me to earthships.  They have so far remained the gold standard for designs using recyclable materials, passive heating and cooling and water/waste management.  Earthships however are extremely labor intensive to create (pounding individual tires full of dirt) and that concept would turn off many people (not to mention those who are not physically able to do all that work).  Then I looked into a baled tire earthship style house.  This is a way easier method (assuming you have or can get tire bales and a forklift).  I live in Chicago where there is no shortage of garbage but what I was really hopeful for was the idea of using baled plastic as a building block in the same way the tires were used.  I spoke with an architect who was able to construct a barn and a large shed from baled plastic.  Armed with this information, I had come up with a design to incorporate as much of these ideas as possible. (I don't have renderings yet but it is basically an earthship with baled plastic walls and a multiple layered roof made from discarded wooden pallets) #3. Alternative Energy: Of course solar and wind are great and are always the most important.  But things like an organic waste biodigester would help create methane that could be used for heating and cooking.  And a rocket mass heater which can store heat energy and release it slowly through mass, rather than heating the air. #4. Waste management: An earthship home has a built in septic system which contains waste and blackwater until it can be processed by anaerobic bacteria.  Once processed, the result is a clear fertilizer which drains into a leach field where plants grow above.  In addition to this, if this Kamp is in a warmer area, Black Soldier fly larvae could be used to process organic waste and then be fed to the tilapia in the aquaponics system or chickens (or even humans?).  They are an amazing asset to sustainability. #5. FOOD Aquaponics - Greens, herbs, small crops (can be adapted for larger plants) Permaculture - Fruits, nuts, veggies. Traditional - Larger staple crops (corn, wheat, beans, etc) Chickens, ducks, quail (Eggs and Meat) Fish from Aquaponics Goats (Milk, Cheese, Yogurt) -  Hopefully this is helpful as (at the very least) a starting point for research and ideas.  There are many other useful ideas I have learned in more specific situations. (all the hyperlinks go to pages or videos explaining that particular idea)