The biosphere 2 project and its potential role in assisting space exploration
Abstract Space Biospheres Ventures is developing technologies for its Biosphere 2 project — a 3 acre materially closed ecological system with human habitat, intensive agriculture and five wilderness biomes — and other life-support testbeds for space habitats in microgravity and the Moon and Mars, as well as for ecological research pertinent to the biosphere of Earth. These include soil bed reactors for air purification and biomass production; aquatic waste processing systems; real-time analytic systems; and computer systems of control and management. A space policy pursuing joint Earth and ‘space biospheres’ objectives and implications is discussed.
Sustainable food production for a complete diet
Home gardens provide relatively little supplemental food or in come for most practitioners in the United States (Utzinger and Connolly, 1978; Wishnetsky and Cash, 1976). but they can be important sources of supplemental nutrition and income for people in developing countries (Gershon and Yen-Ching. 1984; Mullane, 1981; O’Brien-Place, 1987; Yoon, 1983). Family gardens can provide a form of food security if they are keyed to specific nutritional needs (Gershon and Yen-Ching. 1984; Popkin et al.. 1980). The extent to which it is practical to produce a complete diet in a garden is unknown. Duhon and Gebhard (1985) are representative of an organic fanning movement that advocates complete food independence through sustainable family gardens. They estimate that a complete diet can be produced on as little as 100 m of land with few external inputs. NASA estimates of the space to produce a complete diet are as low as 25 m (Hoff et al., 1982). To our knowledge, these estimates have not been verified experimentally. We have helped to develop the food production system for Biosphere II. a closed, I-ha ecosystem in which eight people will grow their own food using natural desert soil and sustainable meth ods. As a pretest of the system, we have attempted to produce all of the elements of a complete diet. made up of a diverse collection of food crops, on a minimal area in Tucson, Ariz. The experiment tested the feasibility of producing all or most of a family’s nutritional needs on a small piece of soil using manual labor and no outside inputs. The experiment was conducted in a greenhouse to simulate the continuous cropping conditions that exist in tropical locations (Sanchez and Benites. 1987) as well as the conditions expected in Biosphere II and possible future space habitations (Hoff et al., 1982).
Womens garden groups in Casamance Senegal.
Womens garden groups benefit the family by improving food intake and increasing family revenues through the sale of surplus produce. This case study describes how despite serious water shortage problems garden groups were set up with community participation in Basse Casamance and linked to programs aimed at relieving womens burden and providing day-care and MCH centers within the framework of the Integrated Rural Development Program. The operation of the projects in 2 villages Boucotte Ouoloff and Dianky shows how each case led to improved nutrition and to the initiation of other community projects funded by the profits made by the garden groups. In Boucotte Ouoloff the 160 members of the garden group are mostly married women from the village. The plot is collectively funded and run. In good years there is enough produce for home meals and for sale. Home consumption is estimated to account for 30-50% of the total garden yield. Contribution to nutrition is very high. Villagers diets were diversified through the introduction of new crops. Families also cooked better meals because vegetables were more locally available. Since the garden project began its proceeds contributed toward building a maternity and health center a road to the garden a mosque and in addition yielded substantial income for each member. In Dianky there are 2 womens gardening groups. The older one has a membership of 260 women and 48 men. This group functions on a more collective basis than the one in Boucotte Ouoloff. They experiment with new crops and make use of the UNICEF truck to market its goods. As in Boucotte Ouoloff this group has contributed to food intake sponsored a maternity and health center and made numerous contributions to projects e.g. building the village meeting hall. The article concludes with a discussion of problems such as water supply and food preservation.