Note from the editors

Dear Readers,

A key characteristic of ecological engineering is using a biological waste product as a resource. In this edition, we look at both actual projects and ambitious visions of how to make this work. Philippe Wyss describes how cattail plants in Switzerland help clean stormwater while providing fibers for plaster used in home construction and a fuel for heating. Try doing that with porous pavement or concrete detention ponds! And the artificial cattail marshes also provide valuable habitat for all sorts of birds, mammals, amphibians, and insects.

Students at New York City’s Columbia University examine their own city, in all its enormousness, and the huge amount of resources that are consumed and waste that is produced there. What would it look like, they ask, if some of the waste were used to substitute for resources that are trucked in from elsewhere? In the quintessential city of skyscrapers, "vertical farms" of such things as cucumbers, strawberries, and tomatoes are part of their vision. The students describe the need for change and some details of their vision in this issue.

Southern Cross University in Australia is one of the few places training undergraduates in ecotechnology. Leigh Davison, head of Southern Cross’ Centre for Ecotechnology, along with his colleagues Murray Cullen and Keith Bolton, describe the training and some of the on-going research.

We also continue publishing excerpts from "What you must do to turn waste into compost", a healthy diversity of newsbits, and the latest from the International Ecological Engineering Society (IEES).

We hope that you enjoy this issue, and look forward to seeing any feedback you have.

Cheers,

Carl Etnier
Andreas Schoenborn