Israeli Prof. Yonathan Zohar believes he has the answer to wide spread over fishing and the availability of fresh fish inland. He has developed self contained land based fish farms designed for the urban environment. His design came as a result of the reports of the overfishing of our seas and rivers and the world’s overconsumption of fish. According to Zohar his tanks work with the help of microbiology that allow the fish to live in symbiosis with microbes that take care of the waste produced by the fish.

According to Israeli Professor Yonathan Zohar part of the solid waste that is created by uneaten food or microbial byproducts is converted into methane and used as biofuel.

Zohar claims that these tanks, about the size of a child’s swimming pool, can be utilized anywhere in the world and in any environment. They can be put in a basement, backyard or roof even.

This could give an entirely new dimension to local food.

Although the idea and prototype seem sound, caring for a shoal of salmon is quite different than caring for a marine aquarium. At the moment Zohar is experimenting with seabream but it is doubtful whether this could be the answer to our tuna and cod problems.

Biogas and anaerobic digesters, recently popularised on the radio drama The Archers, utilize old technology to alleviate modern problems of climate change. The basic principle of the technology uses bacteria to break down organic waste producing methane that can be harnessed and used for fuel.

Methane is clean burning and produces no harmful by-products and can be used for cooking and electricity production. By products that are produced can be put back into the earth as a fertiliser on crops.

Sintex Industries, a company based in India, has been in the spotlight recently for claiming to not only alleviate the growing problems of pollution and waste management on the subcontinent but for maintaining that they can profit from animal and human excrement.

According to Evoy & Evoy the technology which is already used widely in India has huge potential to make for cleaner and healthier living conditions for the people. And a need that will become essential when in 2012 the government plans to end open defecation.

Sintex is not the only company out there providing the equipment. Biogas digester production can be found all over and could be the means necessary for those who wish to live off the grid. Justin, on his blog, provides a great diagram of a biogas digester.

Sintex is hoping that their digester really takes off at home and although they are starting to become more popular in the countryside for use on farms, perhaps room can be made for them in our shared gardens and drying greens!