To do this we use waste water treated by Living Machines to grow fish, vegetables, herbs, fruit, and flowers. The process not only takes care of wastes, but returns a profit through fish and plant sales. The primary motivation is restoration or healing technology. If you look at the state of the planet, the whole industrial and post-industrial dynamic is simply unnecessary. John Todd believes that by using living technologies, by working with the evolutionary intelligence of the natural world, we could reduce the human footprint on the planet by as much as 90 percent.
Nature works on the principle that waste is simply a resource out of place.
We're teetering on the edge of this vast potential, and if we start to design our food growing systems, manufacturing systems, and pollution prevention systems along these lines it will be very beneficial - certainly for the planet. And if you restore a healthy environment, you also help restore a healthier population, both psychologically and physically. Living Machines are now being used to treat wastes in six states, the UK, Australia, and Canada. Nancy Jack Todd is co-founder of Ocean Arks International, and editor of Annals of Earth. Please send comments to webmaster Last Updated 29 June 2000 .