10th May 2011 - Ivoti

The first house in Invoti

We were met in Parobe by some members of the Ivoti Rotary Club and taken to the City (the City of Flowers) a small one by comparison to the others we had seen - it was a settlement founded by the Germans in 1824 and later there were a considerable number of Japanese people who settled in the 20th century.

We visited a play project supported by the local Club for children of working parents - children go to chool either morning or afternoon and this project helped plug the gap. We were treated to a dnace display by some of the students and saw the facilities which were available including an indoor football pitch.

Next it was off to see the Mayor - another but a very nice lady who we met again at Rio airport who recognised us so we must have made some sort of impression.

Our next visit was to a private school which had a great orchestra who had travelled through Europe and they gave a us a rendition of their catalogue, which was excellent.

After lunch we went to a 'project' where the guys who had originally collected recycling and sold it to various merchants had set up with help from the council a cooperative where they took material and shared the profits as a salary which for them was better than their totting type activity.

We with the Environment Manager went to a nursery where trees were grown and householders could come and collect up to 5 trees a year which they planted in the city. The next visit was an incentive scheme where householders could take their recycling on a Wednesday and exchange it for plants - perhaps we could learn something.

We went to a hydroponic farm next where they grew lettuce and other plants but the owner also have a collection of exotic birds which initially he had imported but now bred.

Monday 9th May

Today...Visited a waste landfill site, where there was again sorting of the rubbish by hand. The site deals with about 26,000 tonnes per day or about 800kg per person. They do not collect the landfill gas, but they are trying to increase the recycling rate. There was discussion over targets, and strategies, it seems fronm an outside point of view that the public service operates on a project basis - and that they do not have overarching strategies so much as in the UK. However this may not be a critiscism because there are many strategies in the UK which are not actioned! One point which I pressed our rep from the council on was if they saw a conflict between the private company in this case gaining money from the sorting of the waste and promoting increased recyclign which would decrease the income, I was told that I had a point - but that the situation is reviewed on a regular basis.Wages are apparently better than the shoe factories for the jobs in sorting... about 800 REAL a month.
The Rio Grande de Sul area is a relatively progressive area with increasing recycling.... the rest of Brazil is learning from their example - they seem to be someway behind the UK. Reasons for this perhaps are a better climate, not so dry as other parts of Brazil, less social issues, and more development. Also they seem to have a real cultural problem - with people not respecting the environment and little understanding about the value of recycling anongst the population. There is much fly-tipping with the council being expected to clear it all up - perhaps not that much different!
Visit to Augusto Kampff Centre for the Environment in Igrejinha.
Next we visited an environmental centre next to a large Brewery... after meeting the Mayor.
We had a welcome with some children doing a traditional dance - which was very pleasent! In this area they speak German in the schools and there is a heavy German influence. This NGO had been going for a about 15 years, and they run a number of projects... promoting the reduction in plastic bag use, since 2007 collecting vegatable oil from over 100 collection sites to be reused in heating systems, taking tyres out of the environment, collecting flourescent tubes and bulbs, planting native species of trees and educating people on proper care of trees.The Counsel o Municiple de Meio Ambiente de lgrejinha, is a forum made up of NGOs industry and other representatives... they undertake these projects... although the relationship with the centre was a little unclear..... another lovely meal, and some more lovely people to say an all to brief goodbye to!..
We then visited the Education Centre in Parobe and saw the distribution of organic local food being undertaken to 23 schools in the area serving 8,900 students with meals which are changed daily to add variety and overseen by a nutritionist - sounds really good!
Then we visited another environmental centre the espaco socio ambiental which is a really brilliant centre - catering for 9,000 children a year with each child visiting 1 day per year. We undertook a walk with the children collecting samples of species, it was nice to get out and about. The children compared two areas one a ecuolpytus plantation and another native forest, the plantation was visably less diverse than the native forest, and the plantations are not well liked for this reason - similar to our pine forests.....
We then visited a similar environmental project in Sapiranga, the federal goverment has apparently instigated that each municipality must teach environmetnal education. The site had a herbal medicine ´clock´ and numerous herbs and varieties of plants to help with the eductation process. Also * Climate change is not a debate in Brazil according to people we have spoken to - unlike the UK* The cities here are new - abotu 30/40 years following the shoe factories, some are unplanned but there are some planned cities such as ararica.
We then went to a Rotary Club evening meeting, which was as friendly as ever

Sunday 8th May - another day another city

We had a restful start to the day with lunch with hosts (more meat for our tester and some of Vanessa's sausage) before we moved to Parobe - a city where they make shoes. I was taken by my host to his children's shoe factory - where we looked at the factory floor in near darkness but like many things and places we have been to they are proud of what they have done and do.

Another selection of friendly hosts but the only point of concern here is we didn't have a programme for us to know aht we are doing but even so they did us proud.

Saturday 7th May

Vanessa's prize sausage

We have had a free-ish day and taken places by our hosts - Paul and I went to the cathedral and it was magnificent. For those who have that fetish this is shoe heaven with shop after shop of shoes.

In the evening we went to a Sausage Ball - a Rotary event which had 280 people attending and raising a lot of funds for one of their projects. We all had a entry card and there was a draw and Vanessa won a metre of sausage but she didn't want to collect it so as many time Team Leader was put up fron. If we had won the top prize it would have been a suckling pig.

We are still alive

Sorry there has been a lack of posts but we have been busy and having problems with internet acce

Friday 6th May

The processing of waste from the tanning industry

Central Novo Hamburgo

The water flowing into the waterworks

Today a slighter later start at 9.00 which was welcome - then off to the the water purification works in Novo Hamburgo which turns what looks like dirty water from the River Sinos into water to a drinkable standard - the site produces the water for the city (approx 250,000 population so smaller than other we have been to). The city is also working towards providing main drainage to all households about 5% at present.

Another day another interview for a monthly magazine.

A quick stroll round the city before lunch at a Mexican restaurant - although the food wasn't too different to what we had had most days but very appetising.

After lunch and a chat with the President of one of the four clubs in the city it was off to one of the largest tanneries in Brazil who process about 1,000 hides a day. They received them in blue-water format (part tanned) and they finish the leather generally for upholstery for furniture and cars. There are smaller tanneries in the area which do more specialist work for shoes, bags etc. The industry is suffering as one company is becoming an monolopy and they are controlling bto flow of hides. The company controls slaughter houses and so the complete chain.

As I said earlier in the week there are different ways of dealing with the waste from tanning and this tannery has set up a company ISLA who take the material heat it to 180C and the material is then dried and forms a fertiliser which is sold predominately to Italy as it still has to gain a licence for use in Brazil?? There were a few questions asked as one of the main chemicals used in tanning is chronium - the answer given was that there was Chronium 3 in the fertilser and that can be placed on land and they have had no instances of Chronium 6 which is appartently the hazardeous one.

Finally the team and hosts went to a club? which has 10 pin bowling, food and a live band who start to play at about 0.15 - we didn't last too long but it was helped by the

fact we had no specific activity on Saturday.

Montenegro - 5th May 2011

Just a small serving of meat

Tanac's site

Ecocitrus

We spent today with Rotarians from Montenegro about 30 miles from Novo Hamburgo where we visited the new John Deere factory where they produce 3 of their 17 brands of farm machinery - here they only do tractors. The plant is new and is out in the countryside which seems to happen in that much land is owned by the governement and they offer firms incentives to go to new areas.We had to wear the full range of PPE - shoes, gloves, earplugs and glasses. They manufacture about 50 tractors per day and have introduced a small tractor for farms with little land who can pay for the tractor over 10 years.

We then moved on a cooperative which takes oranges, tangerines and other citrus fruit from smallproducers and markets the produce. They have recently started to produce both fresh and concentrated juice which they are exporting to many countries including some in Europe. They have set a composting facility which takes waste material from their process and others including animal waste which would not be allowed in UK.

Then it was lunch with the Rotary club but this included a TV interview and 2 newspaper ones - all this publicity we will be more famous here than at home - perhaps we'll stay I sure Ron will fund it.

We visit Tanac who produce vegetable tanning from Acacia wood and also a fertiliser from what is the waste material. This is the largest producer of tanning in Brazil.

Then back to Novo Hamburgo for dinner with a small serving of meat and some strange pizzas - chocolate and strawberrys and ice cream - sounds and look awful and according to our tester Richard is not so appetising.