[For further information on the Electronic Forum on Biotechnology in Food and
Agriculture see the Forum website.
Note, participants are
assumed to be speaking on their own behalf, unless they
state otherwise.]
-----Original Message-----
From: Biotech-Mod2
Sent: 26 March 2007 11:05
To: 'biotech-room2@mailserv.fao.org'
Subject: 49: Wastewater treatment in agriculture
This is Heidy Rivasplata Maldonado, a Peruvian microbiologist and biotechnologist. Actual student at Environmental Assessment-UNEP Master's Program at McGill University in Canada.
I would like to comment about wastewater treatment in agriculture. As has been mentioned, the use of wastewater without treatment is a serious risk for the health of farmers and consumers, as well as for the deterioration of soil and water receptors.
There are different technologies for treating wastewater which can be used by agrofood industries without damaging the environment and all its components. It is known that the agrofood industry uses high amounts of water in its different processes and it is important to save water.
The anaerobic biotechnology can be applied in developing countries since it is relatively cheap and easy to manipulate. UASB (up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket) bioreactor help to reduce the organic load, the chemical oxygen demand and it is well adapted to tropical, warm weathers. It does not require investing in big amounts of energy (not use of aeration) and generates biogas that can be used in different ways (heating, cooking). It also produces small amounts of sludge which can be used for reinoculation or fertilizer. The treated wasterwater then can be used to irrigate crops surrounding the agroindustry or transported to irrigate others. It also can generate incomes if it is sold.
I consider the use of biotechnologies in agriculture very important since these can help to reduce the use of water, improve yield of crops and efficiency of the agriculture. It also can be translated in improvement of the farmer`s quality of life, most of whom are poor people, and at the same time, as increment of the production capacity of a country to feed its people.
On the other hand, the use of biotechnologies for dealing with water scarcity should be considered in a country's policy. If it is well established, it would be possible to do more things. If it has the government's support it should be easier to deal with different constraints. Universities, research centers, and organizations like FAO play an important role in that challenge. Capacity building and integrated assessment are the basis or tools which should be used for dealing with water scarcity.
Finally, I want to thank FAO for this strategy in the way of sustainability. The sum of efforts will bring good results.
Heidy Rivasplata Maldonado
McGill University
Montreal
Quebec
Canada
heidy.rivasplata (at) gmail.com
[Some recent news relevant to the theme of this e-mail conference, as well as to this specific message, is that on 22 March (World Water Day) the prestigious Stockholm Water Prize was awarded to Professor Perry L. McCarty from Stanford University, United States, for "pioneering work in developing the scientific approach for design and operation of water and wastewater systems. He has established the role of fundamental microbiology and chemistry in the design of bioreactors. Professor McCarty has defined the field of environmental biotechnology that is the basis for small-scale and large-scale pollution control and safe drinking water systems"; also he "has made landmark contributions towards understanding the microbiology and chemistry of anaerobic wastewater treatment systems. He has discovered the fundamental bases for the complex processes that now can be used in the design and operation of treatment systems. He has also tackled the important problem of organic compounds and pollutants in waste water and underground aquifer systems. His pioneering research has allowed the development of more effective treatment practices. His recent work on microbial biofilms has wide-ranging implications for the design of treatment systems. The landmark studies on biofilms provide useful tools for understanding the performance of microbial processes and scaling the results to large systems. Professor McCarty has defined the field of environmental biotechnology. He has laid the corner stones of what are certainly the fundamentals of future water supply and treatment systems. He has integrated microbiology, aquatic chemistry, and water science and technology into a coherent and complementary discipline. He has influenced the education, research and practice of water science and technology as no other individual has before" (http://www.siwi.org/swp/swplaureates.html). The Stockholm Water Prize is a global award founded in 1990 and presented annually by the Stockholm Water Foundation to an individual, organization or institution for outstanding water-related activities...Moderator].
-----Original Message-----
From: Biotech-Mod2
Sent: 26 March 2007 11:53
To: 'biotech-room2@mailserv.fao.org'
Subject: 50: Re: Resurrection plants and water scarcity
In message 44, Richard Mundembe mentions resurrection plants as a possible source for stress tolerance genes. Worldwide, there are many groups working on this ultra drought tolerant plant group but I would like to mention the Environmental Stress Tolerance Research Group at the University of Cape Town (http://web.uct.ac.za/depts/plantstress/index.htm) as being the most relevant for Southern Africa. The plant of interest is Xerophyta viscosa, native of Southern Africa. Several genes of interest to drought tolerance have been isolated and transformation of maize plants is underway by inserting the ALDRXV4 gene which showed, in model plants, to transfer significant tolerance to severe osmotic and NaCl stresses.
At the same time, I would like to draw participants' attention to a useful website on plant stress (www.plantstress.com), where you will find a lot of information on various plant stresses (drought, heat, salinity, oxidative etc etc). A special section is devoted to biotechnology and plant stresses and contains several documents for downloading. Equally useful is the page that links to the personal websites of more than 100 scientists working in the field of plant stress.
Edo Lin
309 rue de Bombon
77720 Breau
France
tel and fax: +33 164387844
e-mail: lin.edo (at) free.fr
-----Original Message-----
From: Biotech-Mod2
Sent: 26 March 2007 13:03
To: 'biotech-room2@mailserv.fao.org'
Subject: 51: Inoculant products
Although not generally known as a mycorrhizal fungus, our experience is that the beneficial fungus, Trichoderma harzianum, can have many mycorrhizal traits including improved nutrient and water uptake by plants. Inoculation of crop roots (either by seed treatment or drenching) with selected strains of the fungus can result in significantly larger root systems, many more root hairs and thereby very much more efficient nutrient and water uptake. This results in crops with greater drought tolerance (or tolerance to excessive water) and more tolerant to other environmental stresses including transplanting, recovery after hail damage, nutrient stress etc.
This technology is being used more and more by larger commercial farmers with access to relatively short product distribution chains. How to pass these benefits on to small-scale farmers in more rural areas is more difficult, as many of the inoculant products have a relatively short shelf life or require stringent storage conditions. However, new technological developments in production and packaging are showing that it may be possible to increase the shelf life and the product tolerance to adverse storage conditions, thereby making it more feasible to distribute small packs of inoculant into rural areas, or to include them in seed packs.
Dr Mike Morris
Managing Director
Plant Health Products (Pty) Ltd
PO Box 207
Nottingham Road 3280
South Africa
Tel/Fax 27 33 2666130
e-mail: mike (at) plant-health.co.za
[Trichoderma harzianum is a biocontrol agent that is commercially produced to prevent development of several soil pathogenic fungi. Harman (2006) gives a recent update on some research regarding Trichoderma fungi. The abstract reads: "Fungi in the genus Trichoderma have been known since at least the 1920s for their ability to act as biocontrol agents against plant pathogens. Until recently, the principal mechanisms for control have been assumed to be those primarily acting upon the pathogens and included mycoparasitism, antibiosis, and competition for resources and space. Recent advances demonstrate that the effects of Trichoderma on plants, including induced systemic or localized resistance, are also very important. These fungi colonize the root epidermis and outer cortical layers and release bioactive molecules that cause walling off of the Trichoderma thallus. At the same time, the transcriptome and the proteome of plants are substantially altered. As a consequence, in addition to induction of pathways for resistance in plants, increased plant growth and nutrient uptake occur. However, at least in maize, the increased growth response is genotype specific, and some maize inbreds respond negatively to some strains. Trichoderma spp. are beginning to be used in reasonably large quantities in plant agriculture, both for disease control and yield increases. The studies of mycoparasitism also have demonstrated that these fungi produce a rich mixture of antifungal enzymes, including chitinases and beta-1,3 glucanases. These enzymes are synergistic with each other, with other antifungal enzymes, and with other materials. The genes encoding the enzymes appear useful for producing transgenic plants resistant to diseases and the enzymes themselves are beneficial for biological control and other processes" (Harman, G. E. 2006. Overview of mechanisms and uses of Trichoderma spp. Phytopathology 96:190-194, http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/hort/faculty/harman//06APSsymp.pdf) ...Moderator].
-----Original Message-----
From: Biotech-Mod2
Sent: 26 March 2007 16:58
To: 'biotech-room2@mailserv.fao.org'
Subject: 52: Re: Wastewater treatment in agriculture
This is from Dr. J.H. Agarwal, retired Professor of the Jawaharlal Nehru Agricultural University, India. My field of work has been application of electronics, computer and information technology (IT) to agriculture. My knowledge in agriculture, biosciences and biotechnology is by virtue of my long association with agricultural scientists and my participation in various inter-disciplinary scientific fora.
My observation is: First to treat the wastes and wastewater and then to use it for application in agricultural fields is not possible for small-scale farmers (at least in India). They might have used this resource for limited production, such as small kitchen gardens for growing vegetables or forest-based plants/trees, but certainly not for major crop production. Are some biotechnology-based solutions available that can be employed to treat (or partly treat, and then mix and dilute it with good quality water) the wastes and then use it for agriculture? Small-scale farmers would very much like to make use of this resource, provided they can cost-wise afford the practice.
If the biotechnology scientists work out cost-effective solution(s), it will be a great service to small-scale farmers and a positive step towards environment protection.
Dr. J.H. Agarwal
Former University Professor, Director and Project Coordinator UNDP-GOI-MAEP,
Jawaharlal Nehru Agricultural University (JNAU)
G-83 Krishi Nagar, Adhartal P. O.
Jabalpur 482004
India
Email: jhagarwal (at) sancharnet.in ; jhagarwal (at) gmail.com
Phone: + 91 (0761) 2680400