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Seawater Farms Bahia Kino, Mexico, 1981-2010
The Birth of Seawater Agriculture
Bahia Kino, MX was the first prototype salicornia farm in the world, hosted by the Environmental Research Lab at the University of Arizona, with an aim to developing protocols, seeds, and methodologies for farming salicornia as a biofuel crop. Covering 40 hectares and covering a wide range of R&D, from halophytic agronomy to multitrophic aquaculture systems and productive constructed wetlands.
Salicornia is a standard crop that Regenterprise uses in its coastal systems -- including regenerative seawater agriculture, constructed wetlands for bioremediation, and coastal greening projects.
Greening Eritrea Project, 1999-2004
Greening the Coastline and Eliminating Poverty & Famine in E. Africa
The Greening Eritrea Project was a 1000 hectare commercial implementation of the research done at Bahia Kino, led by Carl Hodges and Ned Daugherty. Eritrea produced tons of products every month which were exported to the EU (primarily tilapia and shrimp) while providing fodder for local camel herders, cooking oil for local markets, and laid the ground for salicornia as a source for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).
The environmental and socioeconomic impact of this project was unprecedented: hundreds of agricultural jobs created without using any freshwater, plus a 1000% increase in bird biodiversity, 2-3 tons of soil carbon sequestered per hectare every year, and cooling the local climate by 2 degrees celsius.
The Greening Eritrea Project produced multiple "first-in-the-world" breakthroughs, including the first mangrove agroforestry and coppice systems in coastal deserts, grown above the tidal line.
For more on this project, watch the video produced by Howard Weiss here.
New Nile Project, Egypt, 2007-2010
Building Food Security & Greening the Red Sea Coastline
The New Nile Project was a joint development between Gensler, the Seawater Foundation (led by Carl Hodges and Ned Daugherty), and Energy Allied International, with a planned 100,000 hectares of seawater agriculture, constructed wetlands, mangrove restoration, and mangrove agroforestry near Hurgada on the Egyptian Red Sea Coast. The New Nile Project was approved in December, 2010, and then scuttled due to the Arab Spring not 50 days later.
The New Nile Project would have produced half a million tons of halophytic animal feed for Egypt's dairy, poultry, and aquaculture industries, significantly reducing its imports and improving its food security. Additionally, it would have proven out systems adapted to the increasing salinization of the Nile delta, and greened the coastline, increasing mangrove cover, seagrass cover, and manatee habitat.
Al Baydha Project, Makkah, Saudi Arabia, 2010-2018
Reversing Desertification in Makkah and Catalyzing Kingdom-Wide Action.
The Al Baydha Project was led by the Al Faisal Family, spearheaded by HRH Haifa al Faisal, sponsored by HRH Khalid Al Faisal, the Governor of Makkah and Special Advisor to the King, and funded by the King Faisal Foundation. Regenerative Enterprise's Neal Spackman was cofounder, and in partnership with local tribes co-created the R&D and prototyping of novel land-use and water-management systems to reverse desertification and establish new agroforestry and silvopasture systems. Al Baydha became a proof of concept for reversing desertification and greening highly degraded hyper-arid landscapes in the region, and was a precursor to the kingdom-wide Saudi Green Initiative.
Al Baydha Project developed multi-layered and low-tech solutions to the complex problems of rural poverty, rural-urban migration, land degradation, and water scarcity. With no soil and less than two inches of rain a year, Al Baydha is a proof of concept for what regenerative systems can achieve in even the harshest conditions. While Spackman left Al Baydha in 2018, the project continues to develop under the Al Baydha Development Society, a non-profit organization led by the Al Faisals. Neal's last update on how the land is developing was written in 2023, here.
Projects
Somaliland Coastal Greening
Regenerative Urbanism, Coastal Subtropics
Aral Sea Restoration Concept
We are engaged with government and private entities for large-scale coastal greening and regenerative seawater agriculture. This project is designed to establis both climate mitigation and adaptation, with transformational impact on biodiversity, carbon, local temperatures, food security, and the local economy.
Aral Sea Restoration Concept
Regenerative Urbanism, Coastal Subtropics
Aral Sea Restoration Concept
In collaboration with think-it.io's Mehemed Bougsea and Nigora Isamiddinova, we designed an agroforestry and silvopasture system to replace the cotton fields of Uzbekistan, which would maintain agricultural productivity while freeing up enough water to restore the Aral Sea. The concept was given the "Rising Star Award" by the UN Global Disruptive Tech Challenge.
Regenerative Urbanism, Coastal Subtropics
Regenerative Urbanism, Coastal Subtropics
Cadiz, Spain Multitrophic Marisma Aquacultures
Our team was brought on as a subcontractor with Gensler to assist in designing water, waste, and circular systems as part of master planning process for a regenerative city in the subtropics. Our team helped design a new city that would heal a highly-degraded lagoon, increase mangrove and seagrass cover, and become a haven for endangered local dugongs.
Cadiz, Spain Multitrophic Marisma Aquacultures
California: Mesquite Agroforestry and Freeing up the Colorado River
Cadiz, Spain Multitrophic Marisma Aquacultures
Along with Seawater Solutions and the team at Aponiente, we explored potential multitrophic aquacultures to rehabilitate abandoned marismas and help rebuild Cadiz' traditional economy.
California: Mesquite Agroforestry and Freeing up the Colorado River
California: Mesquite Agroforestry and Freeing up the Colorado River
California: Mesquite Agroforestry and Freeing up the Colorado River
We assessed the possibility of replacing alfalfa farming with mesquite agroforestry in the American SW, modeling financial scenarios and assessing environmental impact. The conclusion was that mesquite agroforestry could eliminate 97% of irrigation used in alfalfa, while maintaining farmer profitability, but that the market for mesquite byproducts wasn't yet strong enough to justify the transition.
GKSA National Strategy
California: Mesquite Agroforestry and Freeing up the Colorado River
California: Mesquite Agroforestry and Freeing up the Colorado River
Our team assisted in crafting and drafting Saudi Arabia's national strategy for coastal, grazing, and mountain areas, in what became the Saudi Green Initiative, a kingdom-wide effort at restoring ecosystems from mountaintops to coral reefs.