From EcoReality

Comings, goings, future attractions

by Jan Steinman, Communication Steward

It's been an interesting month at EcoReality.

Our volunteer help has been invaluable, and we're very thankful for the generous help from Dave Atkins, Candice Duchesse and Galaad Perrier. Having taught the dam blackberries a lesson, Candice and Galaad have left us to see what Tofino is like. (We told them to come back when they got tired of the rain!) Dave is hanging in here for the immediate future, and has been the primary lavender care-giver. And we are looking forward to welcoming Sara Defoor, who will be joining us later this month for a couple weeks or longer. Further in the future, it looks like Jenna Cook will be joining us in July. We could not do this without the generous help of our volunteers!

We had decided to give a theme to each month's meetings and activities (as shown in our meetings schedule), and this month is "Energy Systems Month." We were planning a formal biodiesel production workshop, but other priorities have intruded. We're still planning an informal biodiesel session on Sunday, the 15th, when I'll go over progress we've made on our processor, and perhaps (although no promises!) we'll brew a batch.

But the "theme" idea has not really caught hold yet, as the everyday reality of labour and expenses have been looming on the horizon, with a big property tax bill coming soon. You can review how we've been thinking about operational assessments and a proposed operational expenses policy. Needless to say, these are difficult enough things for four people to come to agreement on, but we have the added burden of trying to think in a fair and equitable way about many people to come!

One of the "comings" this past month is a huge slash pile we rescued from our neighbors, who were just going to burn this valuable stuff. We've been using the smaller bits on the berms we've been constructing from blackberry vines and other biomass, the bigger bits will go in the woodstove next winter, and the "in-between" bits will be chipped and spread as mulch. There is a growing "berm, not burn" movement on the island that we are helping to encourage, and it looks like there's a huge supply of biomass available to those who will take the time to gather it up.

We'd also like to welcome our new cottage residents, who have been interested in Permaculture and sustainable living for some time. They both have a strong interest in what we're trying to accomplish here, and I'm sure you'll be hearing more of them in the future!

This month, Shannon talks about the importance of local food, James delves into the world of labour and expenses, and Carol reviews the farm work done this past month.

I hope you enjoy this edition of our newsletter, and we hope you'll be joining us for a meeting, work party, or other scheduled (or unscheduled!) activity this month!

--Jan