News & Events
FINAL REPORT OF
Sainte Marie Pilot Project: For the safe remediation of human waste and its transformation into an optimum fertilizer by Howard Higgins (TNR) EcoSan, thermophilic composting .
By New Directions Foundation
Project Description
To erect five urine separator latrines for camp 1 at Sainte Marie, Canape vert, Port Au Prince for the purpose of Total Nutrient Recovery (TNR) and rendition of fecal matter and urine into an optimum fertilizer by building a dry thermophilic composting operation to digest the waste of 200 users per day. This was done in conjunction with the source separated waste from the camp and the neighbouring convent. Download Full Report (PDF)
October 2010
Richard Higgins – Eco consultant for the NGO New Directions Foundation goes to help with the sanitation crisis at the international earthquake relief effort in Haiti.
On a cold morning in mid January 2010 Richard received a phone call from an old friend in New York requesting him to go to the Dominican Republic to assist and arrange entry of an international food group intending to go into Haiti to offer vegan food relief to the victims of the massive earthquake that occurred on Januray 12th. There were already 300,000 orphans in this country, before the earthquake and 98% of the country has been deforested.
The most environmentally degraded and poorest country in the western hemisphere, Haiti immediately became a very high risk place where air lift insurance cost more than in Afghanistan.
Richard accepted the proposal with the agreement that once the food group was established, he could work on his long time favourite – sustainable sanitation and food security. Richard had helped form, some fifteen years ago, and is now the lead eco consultant, for the NGO, New Directions foundation, based in London that has large proposals for building sustainable earthquake proof houses out of polyols.
Funds were received from New York and four days were spent kitting out, debriefing and printing T shirts in the UK before flying out to the Dominican Republic. Richard took a long time professional friend and Permaculture specialist with him, Andrew Crayton, aka Gaura. Together they were to research the best method of entering the then, dangerous country where hold up and bribery were common at the border, which was the only way into the country. The airport and dock having been badly smashed by the earthquake. They flew in and set up base in a down town hotel in the Capital, Santo Domingo.
February 2010
Richard Higgins in Haiti
Richard Higgins is in the Dominican Republic. He’s leading the Food For Life relief effort in Haiti, and is currently based in the Dominican Republic’s capital, Santo Domingo.
Richard and his small team are making good contacts with food relief, security and government agencies, preparing the ground work for short- and long-term reconstruction. Just getting into Haiti is fraught with problems, which is one reason why it is so necessary to build up good working relationships with the other agencies.
They have identified a site by a lake 15 miles east of Port-au-Prince, Fond Parisien, where there is land already growing vegetables and a plentiful supply of water.
Richard is also a consultant with New Directions Foundation, and will be implementing dry sanitation systems to hygienically process human excrement into compost for growing crops. Sewage is one of many major problems in Haiti, and if it’s not dealt with ASAP, may cause major disease outbreaks.
Food for Life will soon be cooking hot vegetarian meals and distributing them to Haitians rather than simply giving out raw ingredients such as rice. Distributing raw food staples is all very well, but with the destruction of many homes and other buildings, people have difficulty cooking and thus actually getting food into people’s mouths is not straightforward. There are even reports of large-scale diversion of food relief supplies, so it is vital to provide meals as directly as possible.
His immediate needs are for cash, extremely large cooking pots/woks, gas burners, gas bottles and huge quantities of paper plates.
February 2010
We congratulate Denis Potter as he welcomes the Chief Minister of Sarawak on the opening day (Feb '10) of his latest Bio diesel and polyol production plant.
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August 2009
From Left to Right
Richard Higgins and Andrew Loxham meet David Heron (Arup Consulting Engineers). Also present at the meeting are Mr Stephen Potter and Dr Denis Potter (the inventor of the Organic Plastic Building Material, known as Mattol, which is to be used in the construction of the Project Dwelling.)
July 2009
The Annual Howard Lecture 2009 by Richard Higgins at Coventry University
Hosted by Grow Africa, Richard Higgins gave this prestigious lecture entitled Food Security and EcoSan, in front of an audience of visiting Nigerian delegates to the Royal Agricultural Show.