Thursday, April 9, 2015

Bessemer Aquaponics And The California Drought

An e-mail I sent to City Council today:

"On the California Drought:

California produces half the produce sold in the USA. Grocery prices are about to rise sharply for all of us. One co-op is great, I love the RCC but that's not enough. Greensboro has plenty of water-- far more than we need. Aquaponics uses only 2% of the water of conventional agriculture. Greensboro needs to become a leader in Aquaponics. Greensboro needs green jobs. The Guilford County Agricultural Extension Service has given us the use of almost 20 acres in Northeast Greensboro to use free of charge to found an institution to build non profit Aquaponic production facilities and a non profit institution to teach others how to do Aquaponics for themselves and create for profit Aquaponic ventures large and small. Greensboro needs to get off your asses, become a part of Bessemer Aquaponics​ and make Greensboro, the Piedmont Triad and North Carolina the world's leader in Aquaponics and a major exporter instead of an importer of food: http://bessemeraquaponics.blogspot.com/2015/04/interesting-and-enlightening-facts.html

Because, you're going to pay even more if you don't.
I'm not asking for your money, I'm not asking for City or County money. I own the necessary tools. For $10,000 or less I can build a 13,000 gallon Aquaponics system using Solar electric to power it, no grading is currently necessary and no building permits are needed as the structures all come under temporary classifications. Such a system should be able to produce roughly 10,000 pounds of fish a year plus vegetables. With volunteers the proceeds could go back into expanding the system. Given the money I could have it up and running in 30 days. Sadly these things usually involve lots of talking and very little doing-- thus the reason I don't fit too well with your current efforts.
What I am asking for is cooperation and public support so that the community will see the City and County are behind these efforts. I'm asking for assistance in putting programs together for Go Fund Me campaigns, Public Service TV spots, volunteer lawyers, anything you know people who know how to do that I can't do. I can build and grow, I'm doing that already. People don't believe anything in this city until YOU say it's a go.
And folks, if the fact that I am founding and running this effort thus far is of concern to you I do understand and am willing to take a back seat or walk away if you think it necessary to make it happen. I understand my past political activities and blog posts have not made me friends with a lot of you but you aren't doing this for me, you're doing it for Greensboro and Guilford County. I'm even willing to be a grunt laborer just to make it happen.

Because, we're going to pay even more if you don't. You'll pay more for groceries, you'll pay more in aid to the homeless. You'll pay more in property crimes. You'll pay more for insurance and ultimately everyone will pay more in city and county taxes to recoup the losses.
And that bridge that is planned to be built across the NCRR and Burlington Road at the north end of Franklin Blvd in the next 20-40 years or so? It will take the properties to the west of this one and only a small portion of this property. We won't be in the way.
I mean seriously folks, this property has never been taxed by Guilford County. It's the original site of the first county old folks home, later the NC Polio Hospital, the first racially integrated hospital in North Carolina. The Greenfields Retirement home was next door. It's 33 acres total. The Ag Ext Service might be using 10 acres but the deed shows the Ag Center as occupying the entire property. The County pays to mow what is mostly a paved parking lot. The City of Greensboro annexed the property in 1958 and has never collected a dime of property tax. It borders Bessemer Ave, Burlington Rd and Wendover Ave and is just minutes from US 29, I-85/40 and the Beltline-- could there be a better use for it than to establish a teaching center that would bring an entire new industry to Greensboro, the Piedmont Triad and North Carolina? The property is zoned Institutional.
And for those who think it impossible I give you just 1 hour from Greensboro, in Martinsville, VA. the world's largest indoor producer of Tilapia and the "World's largest sustainable indoor fishery." http://www.blueridgeaquaculture.com/aboutus.cfm  Looks like we've already got a start on centering the industry close to home.
I saw Sarah Healey downtown yesterday. Someone was stealing food from the boxes she placed on Washington St for the food drive... Guess people are really hungry. Here's what Ed Whitfield has to say on the matter:

https://youtu.be/fPcIumnhB8I
I'm talking about giving people fishing poles and watering holes of their own. And I'm arguing for Capitalism at the grass roots level because I was taught Capitalism works best when shared.

-Billy
PS. Wouldn't you really like to read me writing something good for a change.... I know I would."

Methinks City Council has become so totally consumed with Trudy Wade and their own survival they have completely forgotten why their survival is supposedly important to Greensboro in the first place. Love them or hate them, Trudy seems to have proven this entire Council completely ineffective and unable to walk and chew gum at the same time. You don't have to agree with Trudy to agree that Senator Wade has rendered Council useless as tits on a boar hog and looking as dumb as a mud fence.



Let's see if they're capable of proving me wrong.