Using the Power of Nature to Reclaim Its Own

By Michael King

There are at least four simple, natural methods capable of oil spill cleanup that are able to prevent further damage to our precious ecology. When combined, they offer a powerful solution to not only the oil spill cleanup, but also to the 8,500 square miles of Dead Zone Area at the mouth of the Mississippi River in the Gulf of Mexico - caused by the other form of pollution in that area - chemical farmland runoff from all along the Mississippi River that has killed a vast amount of the sea life in that region.

Dead Zones in the Gulf of Mexico and Around the World

There are at least 405 Dead Zones worldwide in bodies of water where oxygen levels get too low to sustain marine life. Dead zones are largely caused by chemical nitrate fertilizers used by farmers and home gardeners along with animal and human sewage disposal sent into our waterways. Excessive nitrogen causes an algal bloom that uses up available oxygen in the water, vastly reducing marine life populations in the region.

Dead Zone Reversal

According to a study performed by the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, “Dead zones have now been reported from more than 400 systems, affecting a total area of more than 245,000 square kilometers.” (Spreading Dead Zones and Consequences for Marine Ecosystems by Robert J. Diaz* and Rutger Rosenberg)

And yet, dead zones are reversible. The Black Sea dead zone, once the largest dead zone in the world prior to 1991, disappeared between 1991 and 2001 following the collapse of the Soviet Union and the demise of centrally planned economies in Eastern and Central Europe. Why? Fertilizers had become too costly to use, so farmers were required to use more organic methods of fertilizing their fields. Nitrogen and phosphate runoff in the Black Sea dropped significantly. Fishing once again become a major economic activity in the region. (Mee, Laurence (November 2006). "Reviving Dead Zones". Scientific American.)

1) Environmentally Conscious Farm and Garden Practices

So clearly, replacing the use of chemical fertilizers with natural fertilizers is essential to improving marine life in these dead zones and reducing pollution worldwide.

On the other hand, immediate stop-gap measures include adding Pyrophyllite Clay to farmland soils, lakes, and in the waterways themselves, to prevent the toxic runoff from reaching the major rivers that lead to the ocean. Due to Pyrophyllite Clay’s amorphous silica content, chemical nitrogen and phosphate in the soil or water is broken down into a more bioavailable form where it is more readily taken up by the plants. This benefits crop yields as it reduces the amount of chemical runoff into our lakes, rivers and oceans.

2) Oil Eating Microbes (Archaea)

This is the simplest, fastest and most effective remedy. The oil eating capabilities of various strains of archaea can clean both your soils and waterways from a wide variety of environmental toxins, including oil spills of any size, both on land and in the ocean. The United Nations Environmental Program tests have even demonstrated the natural ability of archaea strains to clean up some of the worst toxins of the chemical industry. Other benefits? The dead zones of the world would also disappear.

3) Paul Stamets' Mushroom Solution for Oil Spills

http://www.ted.com/talks/paul_stamets_on_6_ways_mushrooms_can_save_the_world.html

The Mushroom Solution TED Video takes you to a world authority on mushrooms Paul Stamets and the mushroom’s ability to help us clean up our environment. In the middle of the TED video, you will see a picture of a small mountain of mushrooms that grew off of a combination of petrochemicals, drastically reducing its petroleum count, while building the beginnings of a dynamic ecosystem.

4) Hey, What About Hay?

Video http://www.wimp.com/solutionoil/

Here is a revealing, simple approach from the practical side of farmers. Hay tossed onto the oil in the ocean will attract the oil to itself (remember, oil and water don't mix, but hay and oil become a bonded pair), and continue to float on the surface until large seaweed harvesters come by and pick it up. It can then be delivered to a future forest, inoculated with mycelia from mushrooms which would feed off of the oil and convert it to food. The resulting biomass will pick up some of the diverse flora and fauna of the region as seeds are delivered to the pile by the local birds and animals. Trees can be planted nearby, and based on known evidence, one of the most lush forest areas in the state will soon follow.

Summary

Bottom line is that natural answers already exist - and they are more effective, and more powerful, than the chemical attempts. Of course, vested interests also exist which prefer you do not know of these natural measures, but their world is rapidly crumbling before our eyes, and an entire world focused on cooperation for the betterment of the whole is now emerging from the shadows.

The solutions are simpler than we think. The question is, are we, as a society, going to mandate that these natural solutions, or others like them, be implemented now?

Our job is to become living examples of the way we want the world to live. We begin by cleaning up the corner of the world in which we live, and insist that responsible parties do the same. So, let’s do it!

Many are doing this now, the movement is growing - and it is here to stay! So go ahead, envision the cleanest and happiest world you can imagine, and play your part now to bring it about. We are making it happen with every word from our mouths, and every action we take in the positive direction! The outcome is up to US!

Many blessings of health and success,

Enjoy the simple gifts from Nature!

Michael King is a Life Enrichment Consultant, a natural intuitive, a researcher of Nature's most powerful healing resources the world over, the author of "Detoxify, Nourish & Build -- Three Essentials for Vibrant Health" and the Vital Health News Updates - a periodic newsletter documenting the most life-building natural resources on the planet. Michael is also an advocate of sustainable gardening, environmental responsibility, and an architect of ways to increase global food production.