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Going green in Arviat Students to build portable greenhouses
Miranda Scotland
Northern News Services
Published Wednesday, July 10, 2013
ARVIAT
A group of youth are working with the Arviat Health Committee to help create a sustainable food system in the community this summer.
Two university students and six high school students have been hired and they're currently germinating seeds as well as building portable greenhouses.
The goal is to make about 20 using wood and PVC pipe. When they're done, the students will distribute the greenhouses among families in the community.
The next step will be for the youth to monitor what's growing, how fast it's growing and what plants residents are eating the most.
Jessica Reiniger, a fourth year biochemistry student at Mount Allison University, joined the initiative on July 3.
Reiniger, who is living in Arviat with her mother for the summer, said she is excited about the program.
"There is a lot of potential and it's definitely the sort of thing I want to be involved in," she said, adding it fits with what she's studying in school.
She and the other students have already started brainstorming on how to promote the project, Reiniger said.
Also, the group has considered ways to learn about local plants.
"(The students) are all very motivated and willing to pitch in," she said.
According to committee chair Shirley Tagalik, the idea for the project grew from previous work done by the health group.
As a result of that effort they identified a need for greater access to country food.
"So we thought let's look at what we can grow since climate change is giving us a longer growing season and better soil," she said, adding the funding was provided by Health Canada.
With the greenhouses, she said, the focus will be on growing ingredients for making salads and plants that can be used to add more flavour, such as parsley and cilantro.
Additionally, the students will make trips out on the land to look for plants elders have identified. They will map the locations and find ways to potentially cultivate the plants.
"There is also a project to design a community greenhouse if we're able to get the design work done and begin to build (this season)," said Tagalik.
All of these endeavours will require a lot of soil, so the final piece will be to start worm farms at various locations in Arviat. Tagalik said she is hoping at some point there will be one in every classroom.
This way, the community can create a lot of healthy soil and a more secure community, she said.
"When you have a lot of rotting food product in the dump you have all the polar bears congregating there.
"So if we can remove some of that kind of material from the dump, then it improves our safety."
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