LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) – A group of students at Texas Tech Health Sciences Center School of Medicine is using hydroponics to feed families on the South Plains, in addition to the nonprofit Lubbock Impact.
Fourth-year graduate student Emily Fine is at the forefront, combining her knowledge of public health and her love of urban farming to give back to the community.
She and her classmates built a hydroponic system that pumps recycled water through pipes and supplies plants with a nutrient-rich solution to help them grow.
The system does not require soil or sunlight and does not take up much space. It is located under a staircase at Lubbock Impact, a non-profit organization that provides community resources such as meals, free medical and dental clinics, food and pantry vouchers, and clothing.
All produce grown with the system goes straight to the Soup Kitchen, which supplies ingredients to feed up to 300 people per week.
With minimal maintenance, Fine says, Lubbock Impact administrators have been wondering what to do to keep it running.
Wanda will text me like, ‘Hey, should I check this system at all? Like, is it just running? And I’ll tell her, ‘Yeah, it’s just running. You can just let it be. Enjoy the nice rippling water,” said Fine. “Inside you don’t even have to worry about insects, the weather, especially here in Lubbock, when who knows how hot it gets in the summer, nor about the wind here.”
Fine led the way for the project after volunteering at TTUHSC’s free medical clinic within the nonprofit. She says she heard the same thing from patients during her time on the leadership team.
“As a student volunteer, you also see the patients first-hand and what keeps them busy in their daily lives. And in conversation with them, many of them say that it is sometimes difficult to get healthy food. It’s just easy to stop at a gas station or a small market and pick up Cheetos or who knows what,” Fine said.
During grade school in Dallas, she volunteered in community gardens and learned more about hydroponic systems. She spent a lot of time at Big Tex Urban Farms, located on the State Fairgrounds.
During the fair season, the organization uses the parking lots to grow plants, she says. Inside there are several hydroponic systems. Fine says she’s always wanted to create a system here in Lubbock, so when it came time for a community medical school project, she knew exactly what to do.
“We have small groups within the School of Medicine where you meet, I think it’s probably once a month, maybe once every two months. We have two teachers and in one of the discussions they asked us what we like to do in our spare time, hobbies,” said Fine. “And I said I was really interested in this kind of system and I’d like to start one and then they gave me a lot of encouragement and said nothing can stop you. You really just have to try this.”
She contacted Vikram Baliga, the greenhouse manager at Texas Tech, and he helped the project flourish.
“He has been a huge help for this project. He’s really helped me with almost everything from figuring out which scholarships to apply for, to going to the store to pick up materials, to getting his student assistants to help me build.”
While the students test the system, they grow herbs. Later, they hope to grow heartier foods like lettuce and kale for the Soup Kitchen.
“We can hopefully start providing some more nutritious food. If anything, inspire them to start a garden of their own, or just be interested in growing something for themselves,” said Fine.
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