Bio Char from the Junk Mail soil special 2014

Bio Char

There has been a great deal of excitement generated about biochar, which I date back to when James Lovelock, (of Gaia theory), stated and I paraphrase, that the greatest hope to avoid runaway climate change was to make loads of charcoal and bury it. This of course resulted in quite a reaction to say the least and as ever people divided into entrenched camps to argue it out.

In case you don’t know, BioChar is not a new invention. When the conquistadors were travelling up the Amazon in the mid 16^th century they found a civilisation lining the banks of the Amazon for mile after mile and these people had made garden with rich deep soils mixing composts with crushed charcoal which was called Terra Preta. These soils are mined to this day by garden centres in Brazil and sold. The best book I have found on the subject is called The Biochar Solution and is by Albert Bates, published by New Society.  Biochar is comprised of charcoal, which is pyrolised organic woody matter, i.e. heated in the absence of oxygen, so just like normal charcoal but this material is crushed and used in soils after being prepared in a variety of ways. Albert Bates is very clear that there a good and bad ways of making charcoal and the bad ways can be damaging and polluting and so obviously do not fit into the ethos of the whole reason to make it in the first place. Also that Biochar is not a panacea which will ‘save the planet’ but, that as a way of building, particularly degraded soils Biochar has a massively important part to play. Probably the most important factor to realise is that building soil health, and sequestering carbon in the soil through applications of composts and mulches and through no dig techniques, are also incredibly valuable.

Charcoal is an incredible substance, just a fragment the size of a rubber on the end of a pencil can have a surface area equivalent to a small house. It is a sponge like structure full of pores, on its own it does nothing to the soil but as Albert Bates says acts like a coral reef in the soil harbouring an astonishing amount of microbial life by vastly extending the surface area of the soil. Kilometres of fungal strands in a cubic centimetre, and all the other kingdoms of life present in the soil, all the beneficial bacteria, protozoa providing a richer food web in the soil and sequestering carbon indefinitely.

~ Farewell to Richard, Hello to Ben!

I’ve been trawling the archives to find out when Richard and I went to a demonstration at the Houses of Parliament. It was in January 2003 and Richard had just taken over from Ralph Mackridge as co-ordinator of DCRN and has become the one with the longest staying power! Ken Orchard was the first, replaced by Carol Johnston, then Karen Evans and Ralph. I cannot find the original photo of that first trip we took, it was probably on a ‘real’ camera as there is a photo I took of Joan Ruddock and Tony Juniper as well and I’m sure I didn’t have a digital camera in those days; we had only just started using computers. Richard had already been working in the community sector helping establish the Proper Job resource centre, largely thanks to him still thriving today due to his continuing support since that time. He also worked with Torridge and Devon County Council helping to implement garden ‘waste’ and cardboard collections for 5000 household in Torridge and waste minimisation and recycling efforts for Devon County Council having to don a suit and tie and work in an office at County Hall, hard to believe! Richard has been a great support for myself and David Banks especially helping Refurnish in setting up new premises in Crediton, Tavistock and Buckfastleigh to name a few as well as encouraging and supporting reuse and recycling projects throughout the County, he will be a very hard act to follow.  ~ Nicky

I am Ben Bryant the new Coordinator of Devon Community Recycling Network from June 2016.
Firstly I'd like to say a big thank you to Richard Gomme for all his hard work in ensuring DCRN has given good value to the Devon Community sector up until now. He has left a strong legacy for me to continue which I hope to build upon by serving all of those in Devon interested in Recycling and sustainable waste action.


In my previous job as Recycling Officer for Teignbridge District Council I sat on the management team for DCRN and DCCN which provided me a good degree of knowledge about these sister organisations.  My eight and a half years at Teignbridge Council also puts me on a sound footing to take DCRN forward providing me a good knowledge of the local scene and an understanding of local authority, funders and partners of the DCRN.

I have previously worked in the private sector for Croner and then TNS Plc whilst living in London and got my first full time environmental job with Groundwork west London for whom I ran a Resource Efficiency Club, funded by envirowise (formerly WRAP) helping small to medium sized businesses make savings.  I moved back to my native Devon in 2006 to be closer to my family, my roots and the sea.  Working as an Envision Business Mentor for environmental charity Global Action Plan (GAP) I led another government funded Resource Efficiency Club to help businesses based in and around Exeter.

I became Recycling Officer for Teignbridge in 2007 and I really enjoyed helping the public by answering a whole range of questions about waste and recycling. I often found myself explaining away the complexities of recycling and why recycling things that are technically recyclable often becomes more difficult than it might be,  I mean how hard can it be?  Examples of recurring questions included "why can't we recycle more plastics" and "why has every district in Devon got a different recycling scheme".  It always baffled me how something so seemingly straightforward could throw up so many complications.  I believe the key to encouraging more participation in recycling is good communications and transparency. It is so importantly for people to know where the material is going and what will it become? 

So hopefully writing this blog providing news and views of community projects and real recycling options in Devon will help to that end.  The blog also offers an opportunity for DCRN and DCCN to work as one to better serve Devons communities.

Bio Char

the biochar debate

Charcoal’s potential to reverse climate change and build soil fertility

James Bruges

Published by Green Books £8.00

Charcoal is a very stable form of carbon that resists oxidisation and if incorporated into soils rather than burnt can not only sequester carbon but hold onto water and nutrients creating and maintaining very fertile soils.

James Bruges has written a valuable book on this subject just at a time when interest in this ancient technique is being rediscovered for the incredible potential it has in reducing atmospheric carbon. As James Lovelock says, “There is one way we could save ourselves (from global heating) and that is

through the massive burial of charcoal.It would mean farmers turning all their agricultural waste – which contains carbon that plants have spent the summer sequestering – into nonbiodegradable

charcoal and burying it in the soil … This scheme would need no subsidy; the farmer would make a profit.”

James Bruges tells of a recently rediscovered agrarian civilisation in the Amazon which collapsed finally, not because the soil was worn out as in nearly every other great civilisation,but because of the diseases brought by the Conquistadors which killed 9 out of 10 people. In fact the soils that they created, called ‘terra preta’ are still being used today as trucks regularly load up this ancient soil and sell it off at garden centres.

The only potential downside to Bio Char is that big businesses could take over bio Char in a big way for carbon credits for offsetting other polluting activities and, worse still grow crops just to make into char. Nevertheless I think there is a great opportunity for small composting groups to either get together with their local charcoal producer and get all the small stuff and dust to blend with their

best sieved compost (bio-char needs to be mixed with compost otherwise it will pull nutrients from the soil, which can detrimentally effect the crop rather than boosting it) and sell bags of bio-char compost, or to start making charcoal from some of the woody materials brought to their sites and pulverising

this to mix with compost, bearing in mind that charcoal dust is a pretty toxic substance so suitable care will have to be taken.

 According to further research undertaken courtesy of You Tube the production of Bio-Char involves a fast burn to create the char which is far preferable to the slow polluting slow burn that charcoal makers employ.

~ Plastics Recycling Guide in Devon

YOUR PLASTICS RECYCLING GUIDE

PLASTICS ACCEPTED AT DCC RECYCLING CENTRES
RIGID MIXED PLASTICS - PLEASE MAKE SURE EVERYTHING IS CLEAN All plastic drink bottles (squash and put lid back on)
Plastic milk bottles (squash and put lid back on)
All plastic household cleaning bottles
Pre formed biscuit or chocolate box trays
Plastic sandwich containers
Yogurt pots, margarine tubs, Ready meal containers etc
Plastic fruit containers (unless made from expanded polystyrene)
Plastic flower pots (must be clean)
Containers for hand and other skin creams (must be clean)
Shampoo bottles (must be rinsed clean)
Plastic bags are acceptable if several are bagged into one bag (except Deepmoor and Macklins Quarry)
Not acceptable: cling film type material, contaminated plastic, any other type of plastic
BULKY PLASTIC ITEMS NOW ACCEPTED AT RECYCLING CENTRES,
(PLEASE MAKE SURE EVERYTHING IS CLEAN)
Buckets, Bowls, Bins, Water Butts, Plastic Garden Furniture, Plant Pots, General Housewares, Plastic Children’s Toys (some metal inclusions are acceptable, Collapsible Crates, Clean Paint Pots NOT ACCEPTED IN THE BULKY PLASTICS CONTAINER Items not listed above are not accepted – such as:
Plastic Film, Plastic Bags, Builder Bags, PVC Doors, PVC Window Frames,
PVC Pipes and Guttering, Flexible Plastic (e.g. vinyl flooring and hosepipes), Video Tapes, Fibreglass (e.g. Bathtub) www.devon.gov.uk/bulky_plastics_acceptable_list_web.pdf
SOFT PLASTIC WRAP, FILM, BAGS etc SUITABLE FOR SUPERMARKET SHOP FRONT
PLASTIC RECYCLING BINS Plastic bags
Cereal packet plastic inners,
Frozen vegetable bags
CREDITON AND UFFCULME AREAS - contact local group directly
Uffculme Compost Magic - Contact email: compostmagic@hotmail.co.uk)
For Crediton area information see: www.sustainablecrediton.org.uk

~ D.I.Y. Clothes Swaps

Interested in running your own clothes swap? We’d like to help. Recycle Devon has put together a clothes swap event toolkit to enable members of the public to put on their own clothes swap a.k.a. a Swish. The kit includes a complete ‘How To…’ guide for each of the events and all of the equipment and materials that you might need such as coat hangers, hanging rails and a poster template. Additionally, Recycle Devon’s Re-Use Project Co-ordinator, Emma Croft, will be available to support and advise you throughout the process of setting up and running your event.

“Swishing is a great way to pass on clothes that we no longer need or want to someone else that can give them a new lease of life. Lots of communities

around Devon are holding their own events already and we want to encourage more towns and villages to swap not shop! Around 30% of clothes in our wardrobes haven’t been worn for more than a year which equates to about £1000 worth of clothes that could happily find a new home.” said Emma.

Sarah McDonald organises the Exeter Clothes Swap and her advice for anyone looking to organise something similar is “Just do it! If all of the organisation involved is what’s putting you off, then just rope in a few friends to help you. Either that or organise a small-scale swap in your front room with just your friends and family to make it simple. Clothes swapping is brilliant!” For further information, please contact:

Emma Croft, Reuse Project Co-ordinator at Devon County Council: emma.croft@devon.gov.uk or 07966 566435 or visit

http://www.recycledevon.org/ content/clothes-swaps Exeter Clothes Swap Events

https://www.facebook.com/ groups/280855638719312/?fref=ts

~ Devon Schools Sustainability Bulletin #19

Devon Schools Sustainability Bulletin #19 September 2015 Welcome to the Autumn term issue of the Devon Schools Sustainability Bulletin. This half term we have a packed calendar of events and training, and a new calendar link. Do let us know if you like it. There are also ideas for what to do in your garden at school, and news about the new Countryside Classroom teaching resources website. Do forward this on to others who might be interested and if you have not already subscribed and would like to. Click to sign up. Contents News Training and events  Gardening and composting in school Reduce, Reuse, Recycle Funding News Growing Devon Schools (GDS) school forum The next GDS forum day will be on Monday 19th October at Princetown Primary School, on Dartmoor. The day is for teachers, teaching assistants, parent volunteers and other schools staff, and will be packed with practical workshops, talks and sharing of resources and outdoor learning experiences, including seed-saving in school and Ofsted and school food. The event is FREE and with a free lunch.  To find out more see the flyerhere, visit the website here and to book email: admin@growingdevonschools.org.uk. Countryside classroom: resources for teaching outdoors in and out of school The Countryside Classroom website is the national hub for learning in and about the outdoors. Similar to the TES website, Countryside Classroom offers a directory of school support that includes classroom resources, visitor locations and details of individuals and organisations that can offer expert support to schools. The new website can be seen here and the national launch will be at the end of this month.  Growing Devon Schools training Paignton Zoo will be running the first of their four FREE Growing Devon Schools training days on Wednesday 30th September: The benefits of growing in school. This day will explore the benefits of growing, cooking, composting and outdoor learning in school. Hear inspirational teachers, cook your own healthy lunch and learn about making compost to help your garden grow. An informative and fun day with plenty of ideas to take back to school. For more details and to book contact Michelle.Youd@paigntonzoo.org.uk/ 01803 697510. See details of the other courses they are running next term here. Dartmoor Saves More - free school workshops Dartmoor National Park and Devon County Council have funded a new project called Dartmoor Saves More. Through out the Autumn and Spring terms Resource Futures will be visiting primary schools on Dartmoor to deliver FREE exciting practical workshops to primary school children all about the food cycle ‘ Grow it, Cook it, Eat it, Compost it’ with a focus on food waste and food local to Dartmoor. There will be community events all about food waste.  If you are interested in getting involved and your school is on Dartmoor or the surrounding area please contact Alex on: 07944791971 alex.mack@resourcefutures.co.uk. Places are limited and will be on a first come first served basis. Devon Environmental Business Initiative (DEBI) school awards DEBI is inviting Devon schools to enter their annual environmental awards. Do you have a waste reduction and reuse policy in the school in which the students actively participate? Do you use renewable energy? Do you engage your staff and students in environmental best practice? Why don’t you nominate them for the DEBI 2015 Environmental Champion? The awards are free to enter and free to attend.  The deadline for applications is Friday 25th September. All information about the awards can be found here and for information contact Lucy Robinson on info@debi-online.org.uk. October is international walk to school month Every October sees primary school pupils from across the UK join forces with children in more than 40 countries worldwide to celebrate the benefits of walking to school - find out more here. The Pod - Campaigns for the new term The Pod has two campaigns running for the new term: Energy Month is running throughout November (Switch Off Fortnight 16 - 29 November). It is a fantastic way for pupils to learn about energy and to take the lead in cutting your energy usage. What's under your feet? is a new large-scale citizen science project, created by the Pod in conjunction with the British Trust for Ornithology. You don’t need to be a science teacher to run this hands-on science activity. Sign up here to download the resources and receive your free pack. Training and events New Devon Schools sustainability events and training calendar We have now created a calendar for events and training. This term has a brilliant range from Food for Life, Growing Devon Schools, Embercombe, Earth Education and Natural Connections. Training and events summary: Click on the links to see the event details or view the full calendar here.  23rd September - Food for Life: Cooks network. Free Food for Life afternoon training event for school cooks and in-house catering managers, at Stoke Hill Junior School, Exeter. 30th September - GDSP training: The benefits of growing at school. Free training day for school staff and volunteers at Paignton Zoo.  7th October - Food for Life: Cooking for a school farmers market. Free twilight session at Growing our Future, Okehampton College.  14th October - Sustainability at school. Free training day from Resource Futures for teachers and volunteers, at Paignton Zoo.   17th October - Embercombe Pumpkin, pizza and apple day. Free famly fun day at Embercombe, near Exeter.  19th October - GDSP school forum day. Free trainng day at Princetown Primary for anyone working in schools including practical workshops and skills around food and outdoor learning.  3rd November - Earth Education workshop. Training day on fundamentals of Earth Education, at Slapton Ley Field Centre.  11th November - Food for Life: Transforming school food culture. Free training day for school staff and volunteers, particularly catering staff, at Growing our Future, Okehampton.  12th November - Natural Connections: Key findings conference. Free afternoon conference sharing Natural Connections project key findings at Plymouth University.  12th November - Natural Connections: fundraising for outdoor learning. Afternoon training session at South Molton Infant school.  Composting and gardening in school  Things to do in your school garden this Autumn Hopefully some of your Autumn crops have made it through the Summer holidays and you some produce to harvest. If you have a polytunnel there is still just time to plant out some winter greens such as rocket, autumn and winter salads and oriental mizuna and mustard. However everything is starting to slow down, so coming into Autumn our main jobs in the garden are: Using your schools compost to create lasagne beds (see below); Building a leaf composter and collecting leaves to make lovely rich leaf-mold; Sowing green manures, such as phacelia or vetch, which keep garden beds covered over the winter; Planning any tree planting you might want to do over the winter. For more school gardening ideas and practical information, all of the Food for Life growing resources can be seen here. Visit the Garden Organic schools resources for specific information on growing different crops and more ideas and tips.  Wake up your composter! If your school has a food waste composter, such as a Ridan, it will have had a rest and probably slowed down over the summer holidays. To get it going again: Start by adding raw food along with your wood source (sawdust, wood chips or pellets) for the first week; Once it has started to heat up begin to add smallamounts of cooked food, and remember to keep it turning (at least 10 to 20 turns every time material is added).  If you have any questions about composting in your school you can contact your school composting experts for free advice or a visit: Nicky Scott (nicky.scott@devon.gov.uk; 07919 467589) or Melissa Harvey (melissaharvey.dccn@gmail.com; 07732 396012). Thisleaflet summarises the FREE composting support offered to Devon schools (including Torbay but not Plymouth). Finally, in case you haven't already got one, here is a reminder to get your free copy of the Compost Curriculum Handbook. It has primary curriculum linked activities learning about, and using, nature's wonderful compost.  Feedback from a teacher: "like a 'Bible' for learning about Composting and I would recommend it to every primary school especially if they are just starting out and needing 'right' guidance." The handbook is free to Devon Schools; one copy per school; two for larger primaries (sorry not Torbay and Plymouth schools). To request your hard copy contact Heidi Diepold atrecycle@devon.gov.uk or teachers in eligible schools can download it from the log in area on the website.  Make a lasagne garden bed To prepare a new vegetable bed, or re-start a bed that has become a bit overgrown the lasagne method is really effective way of involving a group of pupils in the garden. Creating a lasagne bed involves mulching (covering) the soil and weeds with layers of cardboard, paper, compost and other materials such as grass clippings, to smother the weeds and add organic matter, ready to plant into in the Spring. This lesson plan gives a clear outline of the lasagne method and this short film shows it in action.  Polli:Nation helps schools to help pollinating insects Polli:Nation is a programme which supports schools in helping to protect the future of our seriously dwindling bee population. If your schools successfully applies to become a Polli:Nation school, you will receive. A grant of up to £4000 to help you transform your school grounds to become a haven for pollinating insects; Expert support from LTL’s professional network to help transform the grounds, and transform the learning;  A wealth of free lesson plans, resources and materials such as wildflower seeds; Participation in and resources from a UK wide social science experiment developed for Polli:Nation by scientists at OPAL, with support from leading experts in the ecology and conservation sector. Find out more and sign up here. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle  What about Waste? KS2 free literacy resource packs Devon County Council have created upper and lower KS2 packs include poetry lesson plans and address key literacy objectives. Both are FREE to teachers in Devon schools (excluding Plymouth & Torbay). Click here to see a preview and register to download a copy. Recycle Devon website for teachers  Visit zone.recycledevon.org, the exciting waste, recycling and composting website for teachers. The site features free downloadable teaching resources designed to help staff and pupils incorporate the 3Rs (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) into classroom teaching and the day-to-day life of their school. There is something for everybody, whether you want to incorporate waste issues into literacy and maths lessons; run a whole-school campaign to earn your next Eco-Schools award; keep a lively Eco Team busy on a rainy day; or save money by reducing the amount of paper the school uses. Funding   School skill share visits Teachers have the opportunity to learn and share practical ideas via a ‘skills share visit’. Devon waste education team will facilitate a visit to a nearby school that is successfully composting and/or recycling. Here you will meet teachers and pupils who run the schemes and gain practical ideas to implement back in your school. You can also apply for your expenses. Feedback from a recent visit included:  "Our Skills Share visit to South Molton Community College was extremely helpful. It was enlightening to see how with student involvement and staff support, effective waste management can be embedded into all working and learning practices within the school. Excellent visit, time well spent!" Contact Heidi Diepold on recycle@devon.gov.uk or 01392 382920 or view the flyer. Cutting your wasteline grant Schools in Devon (including Torbay, but not Plymouth) can apply for funding towards resources for schools to reduce their rubbish/black bin bag waste. This can be: start or improve your Recycling system start or improve a composting system have a skills share visit (see Reduce, Reuse, Recycle section) to see successful composting and/or recycling in a nearby school. transport costs to a landfill site/Energy from Waste plant visit. The next date for applications is the 6th November, but you need to let us know by 9th October if you are interested in composting equipment so we can arrange a visit. The application form can be downloaded here and information on composters here. Contact Heidi Diepold on recycle@devon.gov.uk or 01392 382920 for details. If you would like to apply for composting equipment you must book a visit from composting experts Nicky Scott (nicky.scott@devon.gov.uk) or Melissa Harvey (melissaharvey.dccn@gmail.com) before applying.   Solar Schools support Solar Schools helps schools crowd-fund the cost of solar panels – cutting carbon, boosting budgets and teaching pupils about energy and climate change. Find out more and apply here.  Funding lists Natural Connections has put together a useful list of potential funders for outdoor learning and sustainability projects in schools, along with links to supporting information about applying for funding. The information is available on the Growing Schools website.  Naturesave Trust The Naturesave Trust are a Totnes based insurance company who give small grants to environmental projects. Previously funded schemes include beehives, pond lining, solar panels and compost bins; amounts range from £200 to £1500. To find out more about how to apply for a grant visit their website.  Tree Council Grants The Tree Council offers three small grant schemes to assist with the costs of community tree-planting projects: Community Trees Fund – for tree-planting projects in community grounds Trees for Schools – for tree-planting projects in school grounds Orchard Windfalls Fund – for projects to plant apple or pear trees to create an orchard on land accessible to the public. Projects with total tree planting costs between £100 and £700 are eligible and grants can be made up to 75% of total costs. Planting should take place in National Tree Week (28 November to 6 December 2015). See the website for more details.  Funding from Devon County Councillors Devon County Councillors are each allocated £40,000 to be used for funding community projects in their area. This is split into £25,000 to support capital projects (spending on significant assets that will have a life of many years) and £15,000 of revenue funding (spending on day-to-day items to run services, supplies and purchase of services). Interested organisations are advised to contact their County Councillor. To find out who that is see here.  Next bulletin...

The next bulletin is due to come out in early November after the half term break. If you have any case studies, news, ideas or resources relating to sustainability in schools that other teachers might be interested in, please send a short paragraph (up to 100 words) and a picture to melissaharvey.dccn@gmail.com by Friday 23rd October.

Copyright © 2015 Devon Community Composting Network, All rights reserved.  We send a bulletin to Devon schools twice a term with news and ideas for school composting, gardening, waste and energy.  Our mailing address is:  Devon Community Composting Network Crannafords Industrial Park Chagford Newton Abbot, Devon TQ13 8DR United Kingdom