Bacteria Could Help Stop Desertification

Bridgette Steffen writes "In attempt to slow down desertification, a student at London's Architectural Association has proposed a 6000 km sandstone wall that will not only act as a break across the Sahara Desert, but also serve as refugee shelter. Last fall it won first prize in the Holcim Foundation's Awards for Sustainable Construction, and will use bacteria to solidify the sandstone."

Comments

Re:Specifics

[rolfwind]

I read a while ago about a German guy who invented a way to make farmable land out of desert:
http://www.spiegel.de/international/business/0,1518,551152,00.html
(He moved on to make a radar camoflaging paint):

"The project seemed promising at first, as cucumbers, radishes and beans thrived on Nickel's test fields on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi. But the project also consumed vast numbers of worms -- 3,000 per square meter, to be exact -- which eventually made the project too costly for its sponsors."

I wonder what the costs between the two projects are or if they could be used in conjuction with each other (to lower costs) somehow.