Healing the Planet by Transforming Sand Back to Soil w/ Rodger Savory | EP 174

When it comes to turning the desert wastelands of our planet (that human activity created) back into their once lush, productive forests and grasslands, Ecologist Roger Savory has one of those transformational observations that the world could be embracing.
Chapters
0:00 - Intro & Welcome
3:00 - Caring About Future Generations
8:00 - The Roots of Desertification
13:10 - Break
15:27 - A Personal History Interwoven with Nature
17:17 - Unveiling the Biological Carpet
23:49 - Quick Insight into Land Restoration
27:10 - The Critical Top Millimeter
31:30 - Understanding the Micro Water Cycle
35:40 - Revitalizing Depleted Soils
38:55 - Agricultural Practices and Their Consequences
42:45 - Everything Is Connected
49:52 - The Barrier of Instinctual Fear
53:52 - Success in Australia
58:50 - Closing

[@severson42]

This sounds promising, I’ll give it a try!

[@insAneTunA]

He is correct. I live in the Netherlands, in one of the most fertile countries in the world, and after the US the second largest agriculture exporter in the world in terms of value. The Dutch agriculture export had a value of 124 billion US dollar in 2023. About 80 billion of that total of 124 billion was produced domestically, the other part was from trade, since we are also a big hub for importing goods to Europe, with a huge logistical industry behind that. To say that agriculture is huge in the Netherlands is an understatement, the Dutch took agriculture to the next level in every single aspect. And the university Wageningen is the most prestigious university in the field of agriculture in the entire world.
Yet our country is only about 17.000 square miles big, and 18% of that is water. But around 800 or 700 years ago the population grew to ten times more people in a relative short period of time, and farmers in the region where I live started to over graze their land. On top of that the rulers of the land during that period of time were at a constant war, and they used the so called scorched earth tactics so that the enemy could not benefit from the crops and the meat that the farmers were growing. As a result the land literally started to turn into a desert. Including the development of giant moving sand dunes, that are still present as a very unique witness in the landscape to this date. But it was a huge problem because it became worse and worse. A small village and a homestead got completely buried under the sand. And there was nothing that the people in that period of time could do about it. It was just too big of an ecological disaster for the people.
In a desperate attempt to stop the desertification of the land the people started planting trees. And I suppose that they also changed their farming practices, and watermanagement that the Dutch also took to the next level became a huge thing as well, because I live in that same area where all this happened, and where my house is located used to be farmers fields, and now we have at least 100 cm of pitch black soil on top of beach or desert sand. Planting the trees was helping, but it took multiple attempts by multiple generations to stop the desertification and to build up enough healthy living soil. But eventually the people succeeded.
The forest is still largely in place, the sand dunes are still in place, and now it is a national park with a landscape that has some of the largest still moving sand dunes with its own desert type of micro climate in Europe. Although now everything is carefully maintained and protected and managed. And part of the forest is now a world famous theme park, with the forest still largely in place. Well worth to visit as well because it is a beautiful theme park for kids and adults.
Sadly enough farming in the Netherlands has become too large of an industry. We have become too good at farming. We have the highest farm animal density per square kilometer in the world. There is a lot of nitrogen and fine dust pollution. Animals get far too much antibiotics, the risk of diseases jumping over to humans is high and has already happened in the past. Since the start of measuring there is an alarming decline of insect, bird, plant and butterfly species from 30% up to 85%. Completely extinct in just 2 centuries or so. And the species that still remain are often struggling to survive as a specie. There is a huge amount of PFAS pollution. And recently scientists reported that herbicides and pesticides used by farmers have been found miles away from where they were used, and that the chemicals have a far bigger and longer lasting damaging effect as it was assumed. There is a huge shortage of houses, and land to build houses, while the farmers own around 60% of the entire land. And they are also responsible for 60% of the nitrogen pollution, but because of environmental rules the construction companies are not even allowed to build more than a certain amount of homes. Some large infrastructure projects even had to be halted due to nitrogen regulations. And we house more animals as humans. And on average humans have to wait 12 years on a list before they can apply for an affordable house.
The problem is, it is a 124 billion dollar industry. And in the US it is even bigger, if I am correct close to 200 billion. And farmers get angry and then they block the highways with their tractors. Not all the farmers are unwilling to make the change. But the most fanatic ones are also the loudest. While kids who are protesting for a better climate get arrested if they block a single intersection in a city. So what we need is a better understanding about the issues among the general public. So thank you for giving the subject this attention, because it is much needed. 👍

[@gman7329]

Hope he gets the financing to make this happen! 👍

[@tommybreen9677]

Get him on Joe Rogan podcast