According to a new study by the Australian Rural industries and Development Corporation (RIRDC) worms could play a significant role in the future of hydroponics and the creation of sustainable urban communities.
The symbiotic relationship between fish and hydroponics systems is well established but this latest research has led scientists to believe that worm farms could have major advantages in future cities. The research used bespoke vermiculture systems to take food waste and turn it into a nutrient rich liquid for use within specially made hydroponics systems. Put simply, the worm farms act like ‘supercharged’ compost bins, producing a nutrient rich, highly fertile liquid.
The major benefit of such a system is that the worm farming process can recycle organic waste from restaurants, homes and other institutions to produce food for plants, creating a sustainable relationship between the food we throw away and the production of food. The research also revealed that it is possible these systems could be adapted to produce food for fish.
Within urban environments the vermiculture systems could play their part in wider hydroponic and aquaponic food production, greatly improving sustainability and reducing the amount of organic matter that ends up in landfill sites.
The scoping study argued that realistically such a sustainable and integrated food production system was “several years away” but if a commercial proposition can be established, the potential for a vermiculture, hydroponics and aquaponics trilogy is considerable.
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