Donovan Woollard explains how the urban farming system will take place on top of a Vancouver parking garage. Photo by Kim Stallknecht. Also see video with the article.

Woollard said the small footprint replaces 10 to 20 acres of traditional farmland

By Jeff Green
The Province
August 24, 2012

Excerpt:

It doesn’t look like much now, but by October the top of a dusty parking garage in the heart of Vancouver expects to be harvesting up to 700 pounds of produce, five days a week.

On Wednesday, Alterrus began the construction of its first VertiCrop urban farming system on the rooftop of a city-owned car park on Richards Street, between Dunsmuir and West Pender Streets.

The framework is in place, literally — a 6000 square-foot greenhouse imported from Holland lays in pieces awaiting a poured concrete foundation.

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Urban farming is a fast growing activity in Tanzanian towns

By Prosper Makene
IPPmedia
29th August 2012

Excerpt:

“Urban farmers in Tanzania who engage in cultivation of crops within the urban areas must take measures to ensure that it does not cause environmental degradation,” Prof. Alphonce Kyessy of Ardhi University said at a seminar for urban farmers in Dar es Salaam recently.

He said that farmers in urban areas have to ensure that the use of chemicals and fertilisers does not cause pollution of ground water sources or surface water sources including dams, rivers, wells, aquifers or any other water source or damage to soils, grass, trees, plants or any other vegetative cover.

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The blocks are 1/10 of the carbon footprint of a cement block.

By Green Thumbs Growing Kids
Aug 20, 2012

Excerpt:

Henry showed up with about 100 Earth Blocks. His farm is a little over an hour away in Cobourg Ontario. He makes the blocks from his local clay, and adds 5-8% cement. The blocks are 1/10 of the carbon footprint of a cement block. They contain far less cement and are air-dried rather than kiln-dried. While they won’t last as long as cement blocks, they are comparable to wood for longevity, and using them thus leaves more trees alive and breathing. By growing more food and composting food waste close to home, greenhouse gas emissions are reduced. Further reductions are obtained by organic practices that do not use fossil fuels for fertilizer. Each bed this size will reduce GHGe by between 1.13 and 1.38T.

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