August/September 1978 RAIN Page 7 National Recycling Networking Dear Rain: I wish to take this opportunity to outline for you a serious problem which I perceive in the so-called recycling industry. I also wish to initiate a dialogue with you which may assist us to resolve this problem. With the continuing energy and resource crunch as well as the increase in regulations involving solid waste disposal facilities, many municipalities are looking to source separation systems as a viable part of their solid waste management plans. For instance, only a handful of towns collected recyclables in 1971; now more than 250 communities offer such service. Private enterprise is increasing their investment in reclamation projects, as evidenced by the BIRP project in Arizona and Weyerhaeuser's large office paper recovery system. In other words, there is a growing interest in and a growing audience for recycling. But, as with many innovative and community-based activities, the level of available literature is seriously limited. In a sense, the new recycling program operator will encounter the same difficulties as many previous project coordinators. Information is available but there is no vehicle to gather, evaluate, review and disseminate the available literature. A national recycling publication is needed. I believe, after seven years operating a wide-based recycling business and now participating in a resource management consulting firm, a need and a market exists for a recycling publication. Present publications such as yours and Compost Science ILand Utiliz.ation peripherally address recycling issues. But no single document aims to serve only this audience. I have gathered materials, including mailing lists, for use in the establishment of such a newsletter or magazine. In addition, I have begun a draft developmental plan. But advice from the learned is required. What comments, given the tentative nature of my remarks contained herein, can you offer? Have you encountered similar interest from other parties? Is this idea fundable? I recognize that my questions may be difficult to address. I am more than willing to provide additional details. But I appreciate your previous assistance and I hope you can help me at this time. Please feel free to contact me. Sincerely, Jerry Powell Resource Conservation Consul tants 1615 N.W. 23rd Ave.,Suite One Portland, Oregon 97210 cc: Jerry Goldstein, Compost Science The Best of Seed Dear RAIN : I saw your review of Growing and Saving Vegetable Seeds by Marc Rogers in the July issueand wanted to suggest some alternatives. Three small booklets I have found to be quite good are : Vegetable and Herb Seed Growing by Douglas Miller, Jr., Bullkill Creek Publications, Hersey, MI, $3.25. • Growing Garden Seeds by Rob Johnston, Jr., johnny's Selected Seeds, Albion, ME 04910, $2.30. • Save Your Own Seed, by Lawrence D. l-Iills, The Henry Doubleday Research Association, Bocking, Braintree, Essex, England. Rogers' book seems to me to be a diluted version of the same basic information contained in any of these three above publications. The extra money does not appear to be merited. And I would even say that Rob Johnston's and especially Douglas Miller's booklets contain more useful information for anyone actually trying to save their own vegetable seeds. Thanks for listening. I appreciate your efforts and your magazine very much. Bill Wheeler Moving Down the Food Chain Dear Friends: Like you, I am interested in exploring lifestyle alternatives and am currently seeking data on algae as a food source. I have exhausted local information sources (periodical literature and library references) and have gathered very little more than sketchy information from articles published in magazines over the past 30 years. I have established that: • Algae has perhaps the largest energy/protein potential of any food source and is the shortest circuit from sun energy to retrievable body energy. • When Cortez discovered Mexico City during the Spanish Conquest, he was astounded that a city of 500,000 people could be supported with so little agricultural endeavor until he found that the major food source was algae slime harvested from the lake which the Aztecs dried and prepared as a cake-like foodstuff. This practice was regarded as disgusting and uncivilized by the Spanish conquerors and eventually disappeared in favor of fear of gods and starvation. • Algae is not currently considered a food source because people won't eat it as long as meat, potatoes and gravy remain an alternative, hecause algae is considcr"ed a poverty food. • Algae is considered by NASA to be the most probable food source for long-term space travelers of the future because it can be cultivated so efficiently in very little space, fulfills most all body needs and reprocesses C02 into 02 quickly and efficiently. • Experimental algae cultivation has yielded 40-45 tons per acre per year with a 25 percent protein content requiring nominal effort to cultivate and harvest. Specifically, I now want information on how to cultivate and prepare algae for human consumption so that I can experiment with producing it. I am writing you in hope that you will have access to some of this information. I will gladly reimburse you for postage, copying expenses and/or published materials sent to me and will be grateful for any data that you can send my way. Thank you for your help and consideration. Thomas Johnson Pomegranate Design Bag End, Emigration Canyon Salt Lake County, Utah 84108 Any responses for Thomas from algae-eaters?
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