The next agricultural revolution | Sam Norton | TEDxCharleston
Summary
TLDRThe speaker discusses an agricultural revolution using halophytes, salt-tolerant plants that can thrive on seawater, to combat the effects of climate change like rising sea levels and CO2 levels. After several failed attempts at outdoor seawater farming, they successfully develop a vertical saltwater farm that converts CO2 and seawater into fresh water, food, and jobs. They then scale this concept to rice paddies in Asia, revitalizing salinized lands and improving local farming conditions, emphasizing the need for sustainable practices in this second agricultural revolution.
Takeaways
- 🏠 The speaker's family home in South Carolina is at risk of being submerged due to rising sea levels caused by excessive CO2 in the atmosphere.
- 🌱 The concept of a 'second agricultural revolution' is introduced, focusing on utilizing seawater and CO2 to produce fresh water, food, jobs, and habitat through the cultivation of halophyte plants.
- 🔬 Halophytes are salt-tolerant plants that evolved in the saltiest environments on Earth and can thrive on seawater, making them ideal for this new agricultural approach.
- 📈 The speaker embarked on a series of experiments to cultivate halophytes in various conditions, facing multiple failures before finding success.
- 🌊 Experiments included planting in confined disposal facilities, along the intertidal zone, and pumping seawater onto land, each presenting unique challenges and failures.
- 🌱 The successful cultivation of halophytes in a controlled environment led to the establishment of a company and the world's first vertical saltwater farm.
- 💰 The vertical farming method, while successful, resulted in expensive products, limiting its accessibility and global impact.
- 🌾 A solution was found by introducing halophyte cultivation to salinized rice paddies in Asia, revitalizing the land and providing a new crop for farmers.
- 🌍 The potential for this agricultural method to scale globally is highlighted, with the number of participating farmers expected to increase exponentially.
- 🌳 The importance of learning from the mistakes of the first agricultural revolution and prioritizing sustainable practices that do not compromise the planet is emphasized.
- 💡 The script concludes with a reminder of the principles underlying this new approach: using seawater, CO2, light, and the right plants to extract salt, capture carbon, release fresh water, and grow food.
Q & A
What is the main challenge the speaker's family home faces?
-The speaker's family home is threatened by rising sea levels caused by excess CO2 in the atmosphere, which is leading to its eventual disappearance along with many other coastal houses.
What is a halophyte and why are they significant in the context of the speech?
-A halophyte is a salt-tolerant plant that has evolved to thrive in the saltiest environments on Earth. They are significant because they can potentially help in creating a machine that converts seawater and CO2 into fresh water, food, jobs, and habitat.
What does the speaker refer to as the 'second agricultural revolution'?
-The second agricultural revolution refers to the shift towards using seawater for agriculture due to the increasing scarcity of fresh water and arable land, driven by climate change and population growth.
What were the initial failures in the speaker's experiments with halophytes?
-The initial failures included plants growing in confined disposal facilities being contaminated with pollutants, seeds being washed away in the intertidal zone, and plants dying due to excessive salinity and heat when grown on land.
How did the speaker overcome the challenges faced in the early experiments?
-The speaker moved to a vertical farming model, which eliminated land use constraints, controlled the environment with artificial light, and used software to manage salinity, leading to successful growth and harvest of halophytes.
What is the significance of the world's first vertical saltwater farm?
-The world's first vertical saltwater farm demonstrated that it is possible to convert CO2 and seawater into healthy food and fresh water, marking a significant step towards a new form of sustainable agriculture.
Why are the products of vertical farming considered expensive?
-The high costs of vertical farming are due to the technology and infrastructure required to maintain controlled environments for plant growth, which can be a barrier to widespread adoption.
What solution did the speaker find to make outdoor seawater agriculture viable at a low cost?
-The speaker found a solution by working with farmers in Bangladesh to plant halophytes in salinized rice paddies, which not only provided a new crop for the farmers but also improved the soil for subsequent rice cultivation.
How does the speaker address the issue of salinization in rice paddies?
-The speaker addresses salinization by introducing halophytes that absorb salt from the soil, allowing the farmers to have a new crop to sell and eventually restoring the soil for rice cultivation.
What principles should the second agricultural revolution adhere to, according to the speaker?
-The second agricultural revolution should prioritize sustainability over profits, ensuring that it does not contribute to land loss, deforestation, biodiversity loss, and fresh water loss as the previous agricultural methods did.
What is the final message the speaker conveys about the potential of halophytes?
-The speaker conveys that halophytes, when given light and the right conditions, can consistently extract salt, capture carbon, release fresh water, and grow food, offering a sustainable solution for future agricultural needs.
Outlines
🌊 Sea Level Rise and the Agricultural Revolution
The speaker introduces the concept of an agricultural revolution driven by the need to adapt to rising sea levels due to excess CO2. They discuss the potential of halophyte plants, which can thrive on seawater, to create fresh water, food, jobs, and habitat. The speaker shares their personal journey, starting with unsuccessful experiments in confined disposal facilities and the intertidal zone, and eventually finding success with a controlled seawater pumping system. However, this method faced challenges due to seasonal changes and landowner issues, leading to the realization that a new approach was needed.
🌱 The Evolution of Seawater Agriculture
The speaker explores the challenges faced by traditional seawater agriculture projects, such as land use constraints, salt buildup, and seasonality. They propose a solution with vertical farming, which eliminates land use issues, seasonality, and salt accumulation problems by using artificial light and software to control salinity. This method proved successful, leading to the creation of the world's first vertical saltwater farm. However, the high cost of vertical farming products limits their accessibility, prompting the speaker to seek a more cost-effective and globally impactful solution.
🌾 Revitalizing Salinized Rice Paddies with Salt-Tolerant Plants
The speaker describes a breakthrough in seawater agriculture by partnering with farmers in Bangladesh to grow salt-tolerant plants in salinized rice paddies. This method not only provided a new crop for the farmers but also improved the soil quality, allowing for the return of rice cultivation. The success of this approach is highlighted by the rapid increase in the number of participating farmers and the potential for this method to be a key component of a sustainable second agricultural revolution.
💧 Principles of a Sustainable Agricultural Revolution
In the final paragraph, the speaker emphasizes the importance of adhering to principles that ensure the sustainability of the second agricultural revolution. They illustrate the process of extracting salt and capturing carbon while releasing fresh water and growing food through a simple demonstration. The speaker calls for a revolution that prioritizes the planet over profits and aligns with the natural processes that have been demonstrated throughout the talk.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Agricultural Revolution
💡Halophytes
💡Sea Level Rise
💡CO2 Emissions
💡Salt-Tolerant Plants
💡Vertical Farming
💡Salinity
💡Sustainability
💡Climate Change
💡Rice Paddies
💡Seasonality
Highlights
A revolution in agriculture is needed due to the impact of climate change and rising sea levels.
The concept of a halophyte, a salt-tolerant plant, is introduced as a solution to utilize seawater and CO2.
The speaker's personal connection to the issue, with his family home at risk of being lost to sea level rise.
An outline of a second agricultural revolution based on seawater instead of freshwater.
The idea of scaling up halophyte cultivation to address future challenges in food, water, and land scarcity.
The initial failure of the first experiment with halophytes in confined disposal facilities due to contamination.
The second experiment's failure due to natural elements washing away seeds in the intertidal zone.
The success of the third experiment, growing halophytes on land with controlled conditions, leading to a first harvest.
The challenges of seasonality and salinity affecting the growth and edibility of halophytes.
The rejection of the idea by a thesis committee, but support from one professor to continue research.
The discovery of common reasons for failure in outdoor seawater agriculture projects.
The innovative approach of vertical farming to overcome land use and seasonality constraints.
The successful establishment of the world's first vertical saltwater farm.
The economic challenge of making vertical farming products affordable for a broader audience.
The adaptation of halophyte farming in salinized rice paddies in Asia, providing a new crop for farmers.
The potential for this agricultural method to scale up and have a significant global impact.
The importance of learning from past agricultural practices to ensure sustainability and minimal environmental impact.
The fundamental principles of the new agricultural revolution, emphasizing the extraction of salt, capture of carbon, and release of fresh water.
The applause and positive reception indicating the audience's support for the presented ideas and solutions.
Transcripts
[Music]
we are in the midst
of a revolution
an agricultural one
let me explain why
my dad built this house
my brother and i grew up in it
my mom still lives in it
but this century
it will be gone
like many houses on the coast of south
carolina and coasts around the world
it's going to be swallowed up
by excess sea level rise caused by
excess co2
in the atmosphere
there is too much sea water
and there's too much co2
so what if we could create a machine
that would take in seawater and take in
co2 and output fresh water
food
jobs
habitat
i have good news one already exists
it's called a halophyte
these salt-tolerant plants evolved
millions of years ago in the saltiest
saltiest places of earth where there was
no competition from other plants
they thrive on sea water
we need to scale
them up
our ancestors created the first
agricultural revolution by taking seeds
from plants that grow with fresh water
giving them good soil
and breeding them and scaling it up into
the farms that fed all of us today
but tomorrow
there will be 350 000 new mouths of feet
350 000
there will be less fresh water to do it
with there will be less arable land to
do it with
there will be more seawater there's
going to be more co2
we need a second agricultural revolution
this time based on earth's largest
resource
sea water
i was so captivated by this idea a few
years ago i grabbed seeds from some of
the native salt tolerant plants in south
carolina and set out on a mission
experiment one
so i took the seeds and i put them in
what are called confined disposal
facilities they exist all over the
harbor and other harbors in the world
every time we deepen our river to make
room for bigger ships we put the mud in
a confined space the water evaporates
and you're left with a salty desert
you've probably seen some on the way
here
the plants started growing
and they were looking healthy but we
realized very early on you do not do not
want to eat food off of these spaces
they're filled with petroleum and heavy
metals and plastics and all the stuff
that humans create
experiment one was a failure
it's okay back to the drawing board
experiment two this time
took the seeds
and i plant them along the intertidal
zone
where they naturally exist
seawater agricultural revolution would
be harmonious with nature
but within a few weeks high tides heavy
winds washed all the seeds away
experiment two was a failure
said i said okay
let's pump the sea water onto land
where we can control the tides
and the plants started to grow and they
looked healthy
and they were growing and they were
still looking healthy
and in may we got our first harvest
and chefs bought it
collected first check
started a company
and in june
the water got so salty and hot that all
the plants died
when i went to restart that experiment
the seasons had been changing
and the plants started to flower
and when plants flower they become
inedible
i said that's okay i asked the landowner
can i use your space uh next year and
he said
no sam i'm going to develop it
experiment three
was a failure
it was close
so at that point i had gotten into
graduate school with this idea like i
really can
turn sea water and co2 into food
but i didn't get a
thesis committee they they didn't think
that this idea was was workable it was a
little bit pie in the sky
but that's okay because one professor
gave me the keys to his lab
and let me run with it and what i found
was that
many many of this outdoor
seawater agriculture projects had failed
for the same three reasons mine had just
failed a land use constraint if you want
to do seawater agriculture you must be
near the coast
people live near the coast
the land's expensive
and so you put your seawater farm in a
deserted place near the coast
but when you pump sea water the water
evaporates and you build up salt and
even these plants can't take salt
and their yields start to go down
in those quantities
and the third seasonality
the seasons control when these plants
flower that becomes bad for agriculture
and makes it hard to control so i said
okay let's take these plants vertically
that way there's no land use constraint
we can do it in the city
let's replace the sun with light
and that way there is no seasonality
and let's let software
monitor manipulate the salinity and we
won't build up salt
and the plants started to grow
and we harvested them and they sold
and we did it again we harvested them
they sold
investors joined
and we built a team
and last year that team built the
world's first vertical
saltwater farm
we
experiment 4 was a success
we showed it was possible you can take
co2 and seawater
and you can output healthy food
healthy salt fresh water
jobs
our first product is now in 40 states
40
but there's a catch
the products of vertical farming
are expensive
not that many people could join us in
the agricultural revolution
so it's back to the drawing board
can we find a way to do this out of
doors at a low cost and make a global
impact
and we found one
you see all along the coasts
of asia there are rice paddies and many
of those rice paddies are becoming
salinized for the same reason
that i'm going to lose the family home
three rice harvests per year have become
two
or one
or the farmers have left
so we got the ministry of agriculture in
bangladesh to find four farmers who are
crazy enough
to let me and a couple others come onto
their land and plant these salt tolerant
plants
and it worked
we took salt out of the soil and into
the plants those farmers had a new crop
to sell at the market and in the next
season their rice yields
went back up
wow
we had four farmers that year
this year there's 40.
next year
400.
[Music]
we are descended from creatures
which crawled out
of that salty primordial soup
called the ocean
and now we're going to turn back to it
as the resource which will sustain our
species for the next
few centuries
but let's pause
remember that when our ancestors created
the first
agricultural revolution they did it with
good intentions
and yet those methods are now
responsible for most of the world's
land loss deforestation biodiversity
loss fresh water loss
this
second agricultural revolution
has to be different
it it cannot put
profits
over the planet
it has to
[Applause]
it has to stay true to a few principles
which have been happening
in the last nine minutes of this talk
okay
water from the atlantic ocean is being
taken up through this plant and the salt
and the nutrients are being left behind
the fresh water is being released
the co2 in that cup has been going like
this
it happens every time
we just have to
keep to these simple principles if you
take seawater and co2
and give it light and a plant a correct
plant that is salt tolerant every single
time salt is extracted
carbon
is captured
fresh water
is released
food is grown
wow
[Applause]
[Music]
you
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