They Threw 12,000 Tons Of Orange Peels In A Forest. 16 Years Later They Returned to See The Results…

It was a sunny day like any other in the Guanacaste conservation area of ​​Costa Rica in 1997. Vegetation was flourishing, animal species were thriving, and the land had never looked better, but suddenly several trucks appeared on the horizon and continued on their way. They parked and then, incredibly,

they

dumped all the cargo

they

had been carrying right in the middle of the area and just walked away, but it wasn't just any cargo, it was

orange

peels

. Over the next year, more than a thousand trucks would arrive at this. beautiful site dumping a massive 12,000 metric

tons

of

orange

peels

on the ground was the owner of these trucks trying to ruin the landscape was dumping them here some kind of super weird act of vandalism or a protest they were trying to clean up the area of its flora and fauna by its own means using a strange all-natural deterrent, we will get comfortable because we are about to dive deep into this strange story of man against nature and many others like it, it is okay to get to the bottom of this orange mess what do we need. to go back to 1976.

That's when Daniel Jansen and Wendy Hallwax graduated from Princeton University and began focusing their careers on ensuring a future for endangered rain

forest

ecosystems. They became ecologists at the University of Pennsylvania and worked as advisors for many

years

in the Guanacaste Conservation Area. Although the country only covers 0.03 percent of the Earth's surface, Costa Rica accounts for a whopping six percent of the biodiversity. from around the world and janzen and hallux were interested in keeping it that way, however, in 1995 the del oro fruit juice company created a large factory and extensive groves near this conservation area and the border areas between costa rica and nicaragua The conservation organization had initially wanted to acquire this land, eager to keep its force safe from the dangers and pollution of industrialization, but Jansen and Hallwack suddenly realized that there was a deal to be made that would be one that both parties would agree to. would benefit in exchange for the border gold zone being allowed to dump its waste into the conservation park from outside.

A deal that would allow a corporation to turn a conservation area into a landfill seemed completely crazy, but Jansen and Hall Walks were confident that securing this frontier zone for the conservation organization, regardless of the drawbacks, was a big victory before this juicy agreement could go ahead, although certain conditions had to be met first. Del Oro could only dump agricultural waste, mainly its orange peels and pulp. He was not allowed to use any pesticides on his crops, so any nasty chemicals in the peels could harm the native plants. The pulps also had to be rinsed to remove the limonene oil, which Del Oro happily did as he could sell it for use in household cleaning products. and finally, orange waste could only be dumped in parts of the park previously used for livestock grazing.

These were areas where soil quality was poor and degraded. For Del Oro, it was a strange but small price to pay for being able to get rid of waste. otherwise useless orange peels and pulp for free, so they agreed that Jansen and Hallwick's plan was afoot and they were so sure they were doing the right thing that they struck a deal to receive a thousand truckloads of peels of Del Oro annually for 20

years

in total. This would mean that around a quarter of a million metric

tons

of peels and pulps would be dumped on land. What the hell were they thinking?

But the plan was interrupted when jealousy attacked a rival juice company, Tico Fruit, which had previously had to review all its waste. disposal system The Tico fruit envied the ease that Del Oro had just dumped their waste peels in the national park and so they filed a lawsuit to stop them, they allege that the dumping was dangerous with piles of rotting peels and flies that caused dangers to the locals and wildlife alike. He also started an all-out media war claiming that the orange peel project was destroying the national park even though this was all pulp fiction.

The Tico Fruit smear campaign worked and turned the entire country against Del Oro. The public outcry was so great that the case ended up in Costa Rica's supreme court despite evidence from environmental groups such as the Rain

forest

Alliance. that claimed that the project was ecologically safe the supreme court ruled against gold In the end the project was closed but the 12,000 metric tons of orange peels were already dumped on three hectares of The land was left behind over time, the project It was completely forgotten until 16 years

later

, a team of researchers from Princeton University, after reading about the orange peel experiment, decided to return to the site to find out what had happened, but when the team arrived, they couldn't.

They did not find the place where the orange peels had completely disappeared. While searching for any trace of the missing shells, the team found themselves lost in a thick, overgrown rainforest until they stumbled upon an old yellow sign wrapped in giant jungle vines. It was strange. It was the same style of sign that researchers had used all those years ago to label the poor quality soil where the peels had been dumped and they had finally realized that the rainforest they stumbled into was the original sight of dirty orange peel. and sterile. man, not even he, Night Shyamalan, could come up with a twist that good, it turned out that the orange peels had completely transformed the barren landscape.

After surveying the area, the Princeton team discovered a phenomenal 176 percent increase in aboveground biomass within the seven-acre area. They measured a fig tree so big that it took three people to wrap their arms around it, and among its branches the researchers saw a terra, a rainforest weasel about the same size as a cute little dog, although what surprised the team most was the rich diversity. From the tree canopy they counted 24 tree species, the most common of which were associated with old-growth forests, a stark contrast to the untreated grasslands just over 300 feet away, where the team counted only eight tree species. , which meant that on this previously arid patch of land, a healthy and vibrant rainforest had been recultivated; some might think magic beans had been sown, but this was Jansen and Hollick's plan.

The entire site had originally been overrun by invasive grass species, however the grasses were suffocated under the tons of orange peels and decomposed. In a rich, clayey compost, pressed oranges were perfect for the task, as they had been leached of the limonene oil that can prevent plants from growing, and the degraded peels filled the compost with powerful nutrients like potassium nitrogen and phosphorus. This nutrient rich compost provided lush terrain for native plants to take root and grow, with only 16 years to thrive along with the perfect weather conditions that Costa Rica had to offer, a whole new rainforest was born now, wait before you go to Eat orange peels around your neighborhood to try to transform your city into a rainforest, the success of this rainforest is a special case.

Costa Rica is close to the equator and that means it is warm and humid year-round, providing a perfect temperate climate for things to decompose and grow quickly. Similar tactics used in other parts of the world where temperatures drop. Subzero temperatures would slow this process or prevent it altogether, so this rainforest phenomenon really was a case of the orange wheels being thrown in the right place at the right time. The revolutionary potential of orange peels is not limited to just restoring the rainforest, although these Scientists are eyeing the spicy reins for many other uses, the main accusation being the orange beetle exploitation company and yes, that sounds like a Society of niche supervillains, despite the name, OPEC or OPEC aren't committing any fruit crimes, but are dedicated to finding ways to use orange peels to save the world. have begun research into the use of orange peels as a possible biofuel. a greener alternative to the fossil fuels our cars currently consume and to reduce waste produced from single-use plastics.

The company Aimplas is looking to use orange peels as a material for a variety of bioplastics, so you could end up drinking your orange juice in a plastic carton made from old orange peels. Orange ception and the global savings potential of orange peels doesn't end there. As researchers at the University of Granada have even gone so far as to design a wastewater filtration method using discarded orange peels, the chemical composition of the peels means they can filter out toxins such as ammonia, purify water and make it safe to drink. can save the lives of millions of people by ensuring they have access to fresh, clean water, man, is there anything orange peels can't do well?

Did you see that orange peel twist coming? If so, give this video a thumbs up if it surprised you as much as Princeton did. team, then leave a comment below and tell me what you thought was going to happen next and before we take a look at even more natural transformations, why not go ahead and hit that subscribe button below? Everything is great, now what crazy transformations have We then arrived at the rainforest cafe. There's nothing like a hot cup of coffee to wake you up in the morning, although we're not the only ones who enjoy a caffeine boost, as do we.

It turns out that forests move faster with a cup of coffee Inspired by the orange peel experiment, the good folks at the University of Hawaii decided to put coffee to the test to see if it could restore a depleted rainforest. Trees are big drinkers, so to regrow a rainforest you need a latte, but luckily the researchers weren't standing in line at Starbucks ordering 20,000 vanilla cappuccinos, they used coffee waste. Although we tend to think of coffee as a bean, it actually begins its life as a berry. After the berries are harvested, nearly 50 percent of them end up as waste because their bright red pulp is discarded to become the seed below, but this time, instead of throwing the berry shells in the trash, they were collected by researchers and a 2018 study deposited them on a plot of deforested land. exploited for years to graze cattle and was dominated by invasive palisade grass that can grow up to 16 feet tall.

You'd need a monster truck lawnmower to tackle that yard. This super tall grass blocks light from native trees and prevents them from growing to fight. After this, the researchers spread a foot and a half of coffee skin pulp over the grasses, which smothered the foliage and caused it to decompose. The intense heat of the composting process destroyed all the root systems of the invasive grasses, not only that, but the decomposed grasses mixed with the coffee pulp created a fertile soil rich in nutrients, a perfect drink for plants, not so much for the humans. Imagine a cup of warm earth and milk, although the trees loved their coffee compost and shot up like they had rocket fuel.

After two years of their system, the researchers found that the Baron plot was now 80 percent covered by a new tree canopy. Some trees were more than 15 feet tall. This included tropical species that can grow up to 60 feet. The researchers compared the trees to an adjacent plot that had not been covered with coffee pulp and discovered that the coffee fuel trees were phenomenally four times taller on average than the untreated plot, the caffeine in their system having initiated mega growth. accelerated, so if coffee can make trees grow faster, could it? It can be used on a larger scale to help combat the human effect of mass deforestation.

Well, you can't exactly see it, this method has its drawbacks, plus the decomposing coffee pulp attracts many flies and insects that affect anyone who lives nearby, although buying a fly swatter can be a good option. small price to pay for the benefit of the planet, however, coffee fertilizer can also cause pollution of watersheds, that is, the pulp can end up in rivers and streams, causingexcessive algae growth, as the rich nutrients that boost trees can also overwhelm weeds. in water, this can cause giant algae blooms that can disrupt the delicate ecosystems of rivers and lakes and not only that, but coffee pulp can contain traces of harmful pesticides that could end up polluting our waterways, so yes, Coffee fertilizer has its benefits, but it is better to use it.

In moderation, if we can get the balance right, then we can keep the world's rainforest looking beautiful. the green wall of china, the great gobi desert covers 500,000 miles of northern china and thanks to climate change it is only growing the gobi is the fastest growing desert on earth, consuming 2,250 miles of grassland each year and turning it into dry, arid and inhospitable wastelands, the cause of this rapid desertification as a result of China's frenetic industrial revolution in the early 20th century, although the country now has the second largest economy in the world, This comes at the cost of deforestation massive forestry and overgrazing that has devastated the country's timber and water resources.

These depleted lands and forests are now being consumed by the desert and are getting worryingly close to major population centers like Beijing, so to combat the gobi the Chinese government came. With a plan using one of their best skills, they would build a large green wall, while images like this created through the latest wonder of the world that is Photoshop may come to mind when I mention a large green wall in China, the reality is "In 1978, China began the ambitious Three North Protection Forests program, which aimed to block the expansion of the Gobi Desert by planting trees over the past 40 years.

More than 19.47 million forests have been created acres of forest and about 130,000 square miles of desertification have been reversed for a prospect that is larger than the entire state of New Mexico, and not yet completed, the program is projected to generate 87 million acres of new force for 2050 is so successful that by 2020 the forged shelters program had restored 93.24 of the Mauso Desert into a lush forest with fertile vegetation, unfortunately not all is bright and sunny along the During the first years of the project a large amount of green wall with monoculture. This is where only a variety of fast-growing non-native tree species were planted, although these efforts look impressive from above.

These trees deplete nutrients and water from the soil, leading to populations of native trees. suffer and die not only that, but these single-species forests are at great risk of being wiped out by disease strains and a domino effect, even though the great green wall increased tree cover by 32 percent between 2000 and 2015, there was a net loss of 6.6 percent of ancient native forests. An investigation in the area also found that farmers were cutting down native trees to raise money to plant new trees. If you tell a guy how to make money fast, he will start taking shortcuts or in this case he starts cutting down trees.

Ironically, the Gobi Desert has ended up boasting a healthier ecosystem than the artificial forest trying to stalk its advance. It is home to a great variety. of flora and fauna such as the majestic snow leopard or the two-humped Bactrian camel. It really says a lot when a desert has more life than an artificial forest. Recognizing its problems, the Chinese government implemented a series of nationwide bans on the clearing of natural forests between 2014 and 2017. And instead of planting only monocultures, they have adapted to plant species of native trees, shrubs and grasses, increase the biodiversity of the great green walls ecosystem, farmers are now paid to plant native plants and know to leave ancient forests alone, so the great green wall has changed things and has become a prosperous benefit for the planet.

It seems Beijing can breathe easy for now have a picnic on the moon The Wadi Ram Valley in South Jordan is a landscape so dry and arid that it has been nicknamed Valley of the Moon although with its red sands and steep cliffs one might think that Mars has been transported to there, legendary film director, Ridley Scott, certainly seemed to think so, as it was used as an exterior filming location for his film The Martian, but today you won't find Matt Damon camping there, since it is located in the second most water-poor nation in the world.

The world Jordan has less than 150 cubic meters of water per person per year, while the United States has more than 9,000 cubic meters of water per person and Wadi Rum is even drier between March and December, when the desert has its coldest season. Humid, the average rainfall is only five millimeters per month, that's a teaspoon of water, although you may never be able to have a fight over water in the Wadi Rum. It is a great place to have a picnic, as among the arid desert dunes, the rum farm is flourishing. Jordan's largest farm spreads across almost 5,000 acres of land producing 20,000 tons of potatoes, ten thousand tons of onions and thousands of tons of soft fruits such as peaches, pears, figs and oranges each year, so , how can food be grown in a place without a water well, as seen from above?

Arranged in a series of concentric circular fields that look familiar, wait, are those crop circles, did Ridley Scott bring some alien extras to Earth when he was shooting the Martian? Just kidding, there was no extraterrestrial intervention here, the water is extracted from underground. aquifer that draws groundwater from 100 to 1,300 feet deep in the ground pumps draw water to the surface where it irrigates circular fields by using a pivoting ramp with irrigation nozzles to conserve water and prevent it from escaping into dry air Desert polyethylene plastic tunnels enclose some of the less abundant crops and help protect them from the extreme temperatures of the desert.

Farmers have also planted hardy succulents and legumes to provide ground cover for growing crops. The gel content of succulent plants reduces soil surface temperatures and reduces the effect of quicksand while extracting very little water from crops, these are similar to the agricultural methods used thousands of years ago by the ancient Egyptians and Nabataeans, so it's a tried and tested technique, but where did they get the idea in the first place? I'm not saying they were aliens either way turning dry desert into fertile farmland has been a huge victory for Jordan. Currently, the country imports 98% of its food, but now, with crops booming in Wadi Rum, this may mean the country can move towards becoming more autonomous. -enough in the future desert agriculture may no longer be such a foreign concept, it could become a method that other countries adopt as the world's population continues to grow and the world becomes hungrier.

Worryingly, the food and agriculture organization recently estimated that food production needs to double. To meet the demands of the world's growing population, that means the world will need to produce more food in the next 40 years than has previously been produced in the past 8,000 years. That being said, anyone fancy a trip to the farmers market in the Sahara? However, we cannot turn all deserts green, even if they look like barren wastelands. Deserts are rich resources that provide the world with vital minerals such as gypsum and potassium nitrates. More than 50 percent of the world's copper comes from the deserts of Mexico, Australia and Chile.

The deserts in China and the United States are literally gold mines. Turning all deserts into farmland would compromise our access to these treasures, because instead of water evaporating and leaving behind these precious minerals that are essential for fertile soil, crops would absorb it, so while humans are responsible for some of the most extreme transformations of the world's natural terrain, we can't change everything to suit our needs, keep this in mind next time you visit your supermarket, which of these transformations of nature surprised you the most and which places Would you like to visit let me know in the comments below and thanks for watching