Yes, we dance on the horns of this dilemma, each and every one of us.
Those of us who do live in rural nature (and that includes me) can do a good deal to offset the impact we have on the local environment. I lived in a city for fourteen years before moving to this pre-existing and historic--albeit overgrown and neglected--farm, but I also did my homework in a big way before making this shift.
Before making the move to the rural life, I made sure that I'd be able to work directly from home, eliminating my commute. We made a point of choosing a pre-owned (used) home so that no new construction (other than replacing the barn that had collapsed) had to happen. We consulted soils maps and topo maps to make sure that the land here could fully sustain us and our livestock (apart from winter hay) and our planned crops. We are working with the Natural Resources Conservation Service to plan and implement a sustainable layout for the farm, to eliminate any negative impact on the nearby wetland. We will become a certified organic farm, and the only fertilizer we use comes from our livestock's manure and from our compost heap. We are trying to figure out how we can finance a grid-tied solar array to power the farmhouse and the barn's electrical needs. Next spring we will begin collecting rainwater from the barn roof runoff to use exclusively for irrigating the garden beds. We are even planning on building a root cellar into an embankment where the old barn used to be, for the storage of root crops over winter.
We find that a huge number of wildlife fauna are attracted to and use our open land. Since we've cleared back the tangle, a lot more animals and birds have come to live here and raise their young, and we think that's a good sign. Meadow ecosystems can be particularly rich.
I realize that most folks aren't in my situation, and don't have a farm to provide for their dietary needs or a job that can be done from home. Still, by educating ourselves and actually doing something, ANYTHING, to alleviate the stresses we put on the environment, everyone can actually make a difference.
'Scuse me while I fall off my soapbox now. Time to feed the livestock, anyway . . .
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
timeasmymeasure
Hmm.
Date: 2005-07-31 08:52 pm (UTC)Those of us who do live in rural nature (and that includes me) can do a good deal to offset the impact we have on the local environment. I lived in a city for fourteen years before moving to this pre-existing and historic--albeit overgrown and neglected--farm, but I also did my homework in a big way before making this shift.
Before making the move to the rural life, I made sure that I'd be able to work directly from home, eliminating my commute. We made a point of choosing a pre-owned (used) home so that no new construction (other than replacing the barn that had collapsed) had to happen. We consulted soils maps and topo maps to make sure that the land here could fully sustain us and our livestock (apart from winter hay) and our planned crops. We are working with the Natural Resources Conservation Service to plan and implement a sustainable layout for the farm, to eliminate any negative impact on the nearby wetland. We will become a certified organic farm, and the only fertilizer we use comes from our livestock's manure and from our compost heap. We are trying to figure out how we can finance a grid-tied solar array to power the farmhouse and the barn's electrical needs. Next spring we will begin collecting rainwater from the barn roof runoff to use exclusively for irrigating the garden beds. We are even planning on building a root cellar into an embankment where the old barn used to be, for the storage of root crops over winter.
We find that a huge number of wildlife fauna are attracted to and use our open land. Since we've cleared back the tangle, a lot more animals and birds have come to live here and raise their young, and we think that's a good sign. Meadow ecosystems can be particularly rich.
I realize that most folks aren't in my situation, and don't have a farm to provide for their dietary needs or a job that can be done from home. Still, by educating ourselves and actually doing something, ANYTHING, to alleviate the stresses we put on the environment, everyone can actually make a difference.
'Scuse me while I fall off my soapbox now. Time to feed the livestock, anyway . . .
-Diane