Elfaegis
"The Shield of the Elves"
Natural Systems
In
the early 1990s, I had the opportunity to study in Germany with
Professor Dr. Reinhold Kickuth, who had discovered a wonderful system
for cleaning wastewater, both the domestic and the industrial kinds.
What he did was create a shallow rectangular pond, fill it with a very
selective soil mixture, and then plant common reed plants (Phargmites
communis) in that soil. Wastewater was infiltrated into the pond
from one end, and exited the pond on the other end, in a much cleaner
state. During its travels through the pond, it had had its impurities
removed through the action of the various species of bacteria that
established themselves in the special conditions that the roots of the
reeds and the soil mixture had provided them. In certain cases, the soil
minerals themselves were used to extract certain impurities,
particularly heavy metals.
The greatest thing for me about these systems is that, on their first day of operation, they are at their worst performance potential. As they age, they get better. They get better, because they are a part of the natural world, and the influences of the world enhance their establishment, versus tear it down.
Although I no longer work with this technology, I am quite conversant with it, and can help anyone considering implementing it. I can get you in touch with organizations which are currently working with this technology, and help you avoid some pitfalls.
However, this system actually fulfills a philosophical need of mine, which is to develop systems -- systems of energy, transportation, human activity -- that do not degrade in over time in the natural world, but actually work with the natural laws and reach their full potential through this interaction.
I would love to hear from you, if you are of a like mind, or have developed such a system and I have never heard of it! If we're going to ever be able to mollify the effects of global warming, it will be through the use of these very types of systems.
April comes to the new grass on
the hills of gold
Tha feur ur air bar an tallamh, bar an tallamh, horribh o
Where winter falls in the long cold north
Black waters wait in the Ice and snow
Tha feur ur air bar an tallamh, bar an tallamh, horribh o
Black waters wait in the Ice and sun
Through the glens where your great rivers run
So we tend and we nurtur all the seeds we've sown
Tha feur ur air bar an tallamh, bar an tallamh, horribh o
Through all the frosts and rains the west winds blow
till the fields turn ripe and a harvest stored
Tha feur ur air bar an tallamh, bar an tallamh, horribh o
Through all the frosts and rains the west winds blow
We will wait here till the winter's end
So it's blood on blood, our bond, our word
Tha feur ur air bar an tallamh, bar an tallamh, horribh o
For the strength and weakness of our days
is to take you there on a journey shared
Tha feur ur air bar an tallamh, bar an tallamh, horribh o
So take this ring, make it sparkle and glow
it's much greater than we may ever know
Back on the stamping ground
to where it all began
Back on the stamping ground
We come again
(Translation: There's a new grass growing on the top of the soil)
Lyrics of "The Stamping Ground" by Runrig