Edition 9 November 2013

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2 Aquaponics Survival Communities Magazine You may NOT copy or use any of the articles in this magazine without express permission from the ASC Magazine. The articles written in our magazine are from contributing writers and experts alike. They are teaching and instructing other people about aquaponics, organic gardening, farming, along with Co-Operatives and other things they feel are beneficial to the world wide effort for healthier and nutritious foods. Other articles in our magazine are written by companies and businesses that have something of value to share and promote their work to people on a worldwide scale. All Rights Reserved Venus Rizing, Inc Contact: venusrizing@gmail.com ASC Subscription Page: Edition 9 November 2013 Join Us On Facebook Aquaponics Survival Communities Click the Link ASC Magazine Edition 9 November 2013 Page 2

3 7 Temperate Fish Species 13 Aquaponics Farming Passion, Purpose and the Pursuit of Profit 19 Absolute Team Work Is Needed For The Future 21 Creating A Bio-Mimicry Food System With Joel Salatin 29 Aquaponics At Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy 40 What is a Dead Tree Worth? 43 Co-Operatives One Of The Fastest Growing Businesses In A Slow Economy 47 Recipe Of The Month 51 Naturally Moisturizing Body Wash 55 Barry Franck s Rocket Mass Heater For Greenhouses 59 Manzo Elementary School Teaching Sustainability With Education 63 Educators For Aquaponics To Take Industry By Storm 68 Supporting Our Local Stores and Farms 71 Classifieds ASC Magazine Edition 9 November 2013 Page 3

4 ASC Magazine Edition 9 November 2013 Page 4

5 AQUAPONICS AT CINCINNATI HILLS CHRISTIAN ACADEMY OHIO Educators Of The Month! ASC Magazine Edition 9 November 2013 Page 5

6 INTRODUCTION Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy (CHCA) is private, non-denominational Christian college preparatory academy located in Cincinnati, Ohio. The school has a suburban campus that is home to separate elementary, middle, and high school buildings, as well as an elementary and middle school campus in downtown Cincinnati. For the current academic year, the school has a total K-12 enrollment of 1455 students; there are 475 students enrolled the high school. Approximately 21 percent of high school students are racially diverse, including 31 international students representing nine countries. Ninetynine percent of CHCA graduates matriculate to four-year colleges and universities. CHCA offers 18 Advanced Placement (AP ) courses, including Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Environmental Science through the school s Science Department. In addition to the AP offerings, CHCA also offers College Preparatory (CP) and Vertical Track (VT; Honors ) courses in the core subjects of Biology, Chemistry, and Physics, as well as a non-ap electives in Environmental Science, and Anatomy & Physiology. The typical course sequence, and the typical timing of upper-level electives is shown in Table 1. Table 1. Typical science curriculum sequence at CHCA. Courses shown in boldface include aquaponics-based teaching modules for select units (modules are under development for the remaining courses). Courses shown with * are core science courses; all others are electives. ASC Magazine Edition 9 November 2013 Page 6

7 AQUAPONICS AT CHCA Aquaponics initially became a part of the CHCA culture in 2011, when students in the Environmental Science class taught by Dr. Savage constructed a five column, vertical recirculating system using a 65-gallon aquarium, and recycled two-liter soda bottles with expanded shale media as the growing columns. This initial system was constructed as a component of a semester-long unit on agriculture and food systems, and represented an early attempt to build and operate a small-scale, sustainable cropproducing system. Though crude and somewhat rough in appearance, this system has operated continuously since its completion; the system has produced harvests which included bell peppers, hot peppers, leaf greens, kale, sweet and purple basil, and lemon balm. Since that initial system, we and our students have constructed and operated a number of other small-systems, including rafts of basil, and leaf greens floating directly in an aquarium, and hybrid systems with mediafilled and deep-water culture (DWC), or raft, beds. The fish component of these systems has included channel catfish, hybrid bluegill, and yellow perch. Although produce production in these systems has varied widely, the fish have thrived and grown to harvest size, and each system has afforded us and the students the opportunity to gain invaluable experience in the day-to-day operation of different types of aquaponics systems. AQUAPONICS IN THE CURRICULUM Students at CHCA are introduced to aquaponics in freshman biology classes, where aquaponics is used as the basis for such learning modules as aquatic ecosystems, basic microbiology, and chemistry of natural waters. In sophomore chemistry, aquaponics is again utilized as the basis for modules including ph, oxidation-reduction reactions, and multi-parameter water quality testing using a variety of test-strip, wet chemistry, and probe methods for monitoring. ASC Magazine Edition 9 November 2013 Page 7

8 Juniors and seniors are eligible to take the non- AP Environmental Science elective; this course provides an introduction to traditional agriculture, but focuses on sustainable and urban agriculture using aquaponics as the primary teaching tool. This class builds upon the experiences students have had with aquaponics in other courses, but spends significant time in the principles of aquaponics (including modules on plant and fish biology, and microbiology), and the basics of design for a variety of system types. At present, students in the Environmental Science / Sustainable and Urban Agriculture course are developing four new systems that will be operating in November, Each system has been designed by, and will be constructed and operated by a group of six students. Each group will select their own fish stock, and the types of crops appropriate for their type of grow bed system; the groups will also be responsible for regular water quality testing, system maintenance harvesting, and replanting for the balance of the academic year. Systems under construction include a nutrient-film technique (NFT) system that will be used primarily as a seedling nursery and which will provide seedlings to some of the other systems; a vertical tower system, using ZipGrow towers from Bright Agrotech; a media bed system consisting of three fish tanks, each supplying water to a media-filled bed with different media ASC Magazine Edition 9 November 2013 Page 8

9 (Growstone, Plant-It, and Rocks That Don t Roll ); and a Barrel-Ponics system, using plans and diagrams provided by Faith and Sustainable Technologies. In addition to the core and elective course offerings involving aquaponics, a Research and Leadership program at CHCA provides students with the opportunity to pursue independent research during their 11 th and 12 th grade years. At the time of this writing, there are four students conducting research in aquaponics under our direction, and with additional guidance from aquaponics professionals outside of the school community. As a part of the research program, each student has a requirement to share the results of their work with the aquaponics community at large by presentation at professional meetings, publication, or both. In addition to the core and elective course offerings involving aquaponics, a Research and Leadership program at CHCA provides students with the opportunity to pursue independent research during their 11 th and 12 th grade years. At the time of this writing, there are four students conducting research in aquaponics under our direction, and with additional guidance from aquaponics professionals outside of the school community. As a part of the research program, each student has a requirement to share the results of their work with the aquaponics community at large by presentation at professional meetings, publication, or both. As the aquaponics program at CHCA continues to grow and evolve, Gary is leading the task of updating existing curriculum modules, and developing new modules to be consistent with guidelines and objectives identified in the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). The State of Ohio is a lead-state partner involved with the development and implementation of these standards, and revision and on-going development of new modules that are consistent with NGSS objectives is a priority for our program. Planning is presently underway for the academic year to include financial modules into the Sustainable and Urban Agriculture course, so that students will be exposed to the money side of aquaponics, including fixed costs of system design and construction, on-going operation and maintenance costs. ASC Magazine Edition 9 November 2013 Page 9

10 Future planning beyond the academic year will include an extended module on business plan preparation as a part of CHCA s Social Entrepreneurship program. AQUAPONICS IN THE COMMUNITY As a Christ-centered institution, faculty and students at CHCA are actively engaged in service opportunities at the local, regional, national, and international levels. An individual s involvement in a given opportunity is typically a reflection of her or his personal passion. Over the past year, we have been fortunate to have been involved in two significant projects involving aquaponics in the greater Cincinnati community. During July and August of 2013, the Cincinnati Park Board s Krohn Conservatory hosted an exhibit focused on sustainable agriculture methods called Let It Grow. The exhibit included aeroponics, hydroponics, and vertical gardening, but the centerpiece of the exhibit was a large aquaponics system with both deep water culture and Dutch bucket components. We provided waterquality monitoring at a system prototype during the spring and early summer, and were invited to assist with installation of the exhibit, and subsequently provided regular waterquality monitoring through the duration of the exhibit, as well as a Saturday community lecture for Conservatory patrons. Also in July 2013, the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Gardens completed construction of a greenhouse to house two hybrid media bed and deep water culture bed aquaponics systems. We worked with the same core group of aquaponics professionals, and again provided water-quality testing support for this project during system start-up, and are presently coordinating with Zoo staff to utilize CHCA students to provide water quality testing on an on-going basis. Produce being grown in these systems is being used by the executive chef of the Zoo s sustainable restaurant, called The Base Camp Café. ASC Magazine Edition 9 November 2013 Page 10

11 In addition to these high-visibility projects, we and a group of our students will be assisting instructors at five schools outside of CHCA with installation of small aquaponics systems for use in elementary and middle school science classroom and laboratory settings, and with providing instruction for the operation and maintenance of these systems. These installation projects are scheduled to begin in November, 2013, and should be completed over a three to four month period. SUMMARY Aquaponics has become an integral part of the CHCA community, with regular classroom discussion centered on fish poop and vegetables. Through continued curriculum development, student-led aquaponics system development projects, independent student research, and expanded community involvement, we hope to continue the growth of the school s program. More importantly, we hope to foster in our students and those from the community who are exposed to aquaponics, an understanding of the critical importance of sustainable agriculture and environmental stewardship. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We graciously acknowledge the support of our school administration for their support throughout the infancy of the aquaponics program. We also wish to thank Dayton Hydroponics, Nate Storey (Bright Agrotech), Sylvia Bernstein (The Aquaponic Source), Paula Costa (Growstone, LLC), Dan Divelbiss (Waterfields, LLC), Pete West (Self-Sustaining Enterprises), and the Aquaponics Association for their on-going support of the program. Finally, thanks to Aquaponics Survival Communities for this opportunity to share the story of aquaponics at Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy. ASC Magazine Edition 9 November 2013 Page 11

12 BIOGRAPHIES Gary Delanoy has a M.S in Molecular BioSciences and BioEngineering from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, and previously managed the Water Quality Laboratory at the Oceanic Institute, Waimanalo, HI. He currently teaches Biology and Chemistry at CHCA, and can be reached at gary.delanoy@chca-oh.org. Cincinnati Park Board, Krohn Conservatory Let It Grow Sustainable Agriculture exhibit. Gary Delanoy transplanting seedlings into the deep water culture bed portion of the system, July ASC Magazine Edition 9 November 2013 Page 12

13 BIOGRAPHIES Kevin Savage has a Ph.D. in Quaternary Geology from the University of Cincinnati, and previously worked in environmental consulting in the area of aqueous geochemistry. He currently teaches Chemistry, Environmental Science, and Sustainable and Urban Agriculture at CHCA, and can be reached at kevin.savage@chca-oh.org. ASC Magazine Edition 9 November 2013 Page 13

14 Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Gardens aquaponics greenhouse at the time of system installation, July 2013 Gary A. Delanoy, M.S. Kevin M. Savage, Ph.D. Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy Snider Road Cincinnati, OH ASC Magazine Edition 9 November 2013 Page 14

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