6/8/2007 9:27:00 AM Taking action to protect the environment - one home at a time
The Daily Courier/Jo.L. Keener --- Carol Oldershaw stands in her garden and chicken coop, where all garden watering is done from collection tanks. The rain runoff from the roof flows into a storage tank at the rear.
PRESCOTT - Carol Oldershaw epitomizes the idea that a single person can make a difference.
Oldershaw didn't create a cure for a disease or solve the world's political strife. What she did is change the way she lives.
Oldershaw transformed the exterior of her home into an environmentally- conscious area, installing a rainwater harvesting system and food production area.
"I have concerns in the future about food and water shortages and oil scarcity," she said.
Three large tanks sit ready to collect up to roughly 2,700 gallons of Mother Nature's finest water that will irrigate her front yard and backyard gardens.
A couple of tanks sit on the east and west sides of Oldershaw's backyard with branches to protect them from ultraviolet rays.
PVC pipe connects to the home's rain gutter system and deposits the water to the tanks.
The peaceful backyard features a small chicken coop with two chickens that provide Oldershaw with eggs. Squash, green beans, lettuce, a tomato plant, parsley and chives are growing in a raised garden in the middle of the yard.
Every piece of the coop is recycled except for the chicken wire and Oldershaw said she uses the chicken waste to fertilize her garden.
Oldershaw is growing artichokes, apple and peach trees, edible flowers and other crops on her property in the back and sides of her home.
Permaculture activist Andrew Millison worked on Oldershaw's new set-up. With the west side of her home exposed to the sun, Millison built a trellis from her fence to the house where baby grape vines are growing that will eventually provide shade and privacy to the home.
"Carol is a visionary in my opinion," he said.
Millison and Oldershaw met through a mutual friend in early 2006 and the transformation of the lot ended that spring. "People need to get productive - take control of their destiny," he said.
Oldershaw is proud of the transformation at her home and the folks who stop to ask her about it.
"What I like about what's happened here is people are curious," she said. "I feel like I'm taking action, doing what I can."
Materials, labor, the coup and tanks cost Oldershaw around $20,000.
Despite the out-of-pocket expense, Oldershaw said she's reaping the benefits of learning how to grow food and living a more self-sufficient lifestyle.
"My payback is right this minute," she said. "For me the satisfaction is taking some action."
