farmfountain

Hi!! First of all, let me tell you (that is Amy Youngs and Ken Rinaldo!) that I've got to your page (Amy Young's) from a book, "The Hipermedia Revolution" and got amazed by the way you combine art and "ecology", I got really touched by it actually.

And now I am trying to convince a friend, who has a place of his own, to construct the farm fountain...
but i have a problem! He tells me that 3 months ago it was discovered that the pet bottles are really toxic (not that the world gets more contaminated when they are being made, but that they are actually toxic themselves) and searching via web I see it 's not really clear.. but I want to know your opinion, because if they are really toxic it wouldn't be good to cultivate something you will eat later.. I guess.. Anyway, I hope you have more information (or more clear than I have!)..

A big spirit hug from Buenos Aires, Argentina!

Gabi

Here are a few links on the matter. I made the two longer links tinyurls with previews so you know where you're going...

http://preview.tinyurl.com/rdmpg - (cancer.org)

http://preview.tinyurl.com/3unyn - (BackpackgearTest.org)

http://www.snopes.com/medical/toxins/petbottles.asp - (Snopes.com)

My take from it, is that it's not an issue, especially with how it's being used in the Farm Fountain.

BTW - Great work on the Farm Fountain. I'm going to try and build one...although it probably won't end up being as nice as yours.

Booch

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Its the hydroxylamine part that breaks down. Its similiar to melamine as used in China.
It gets into the water by being leached out of plastic by hot water. Its a plastizer and helps maintain the polyethylene in a soft state at a lower temperature as the bottle is being blown into the mold.