How California is leading the food security fight [KCRA TV, Sacramento]
…California has become a leader in agriculture practices that work to produce food while slowing the pace of climate change. The programs in place, experts said, could translate nationally and internationally….Ross: The practices that we are starting to see being embraced here can happen on a global basis. We are working here in California….Houlton: Our farmers are the most innovative you’ll find anywhere in the planet, and they’re working to conserve water using drones and sensors.
https://www.kcra.com/article/california-climate-change-food-security-un-report/28651760
Opinion: Farmers don’t need to read the science. We are living it. [New York Times]
…Here in the San Joaquin Valley, one of the world’s most productive agricultural regions, there’s not much debate anymore that the climate is changing….The good news is that farmers can be part of the solution….We and other farmers here are constantly experimenting with new approaches to keep soils healthy….The science is clear that the challenges facing agriculture will only become more difficult, and in unpredictable ways. Farmers will need more financial incentives to adopt practices that encourage healthy soils and water conservation, like government grants or cost-sharing arrangements.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/09/opinion/climate-change-food-report.html
Opinion: Vegetarianism as climate virtue signaling [Wall Street Journal]
…Rather than false hopes about dietary change, the focus should be on improving agricultural practices….Second, agricultural yields must increase….This means more spending on agricultural research and development, from conventional breeding to genetic modification and even artificial meat, which makes vegetarianism a more plausible choice….Focusing only on vegetarianism is more about virtue signaling than improving the food system. Instead of shaming people for eating hamburgers, let’s ramp up agricultural R&D.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/vegetarianism-as-climate-virtue-signaling-11565301932
Point Reyes Seashore plan seeks balance by shooting some elk, preserving historic cattle ranches [Santa Rosa Press Democrat]
Tule elk in the Point Reyes National Seashore could be shot to control their swelling numbers, and cattle ranchers would be assured a lengthy future and latitude to expand their farming operations under a proposed management plan aimed at bridging a sharp divide over the presence of commercial agriculture in the 71,000-acre national park….Reviving a controversy that dates back to the agency’s decision in 2012 to evict an oyster farm from a Pacific Ocean inlet in the seashore, the plan — described as “shockingly anti-wildlife” by one conservationist — could also send environmentalists and the federal government back into court over the conflict between farming for profit and land preservation….The preferred plan would give 20-year leases to the two dozen beef and dairy cattle ranching families who lease about 26,100 acres of federally-owned land in the seashore and the adjacent Golden Gate National Recreation Area, allowing them to continue grazing about 2,400 beef cattle and 3,100 dairy animals.
https://www.pressdemocrat.com/news/9858446-181/point-reyes-seashore-plan-balances
‘Devastator’ grasshoppers plaguing Butte County ranchers [Chico Enterprise-Record]
A pest of biblical proportions has caused some major headaches for several ranchers in the eastern part of Butte County. Grasshoppers are eating all of the vegetation in the area that is meant to feed cattle….The clear-winged grasshopper, commonly known as the “devastator,” has grown to massive populations in Plumas County, due to last year’s warm fall weather. “There is a portion of cattle ranchers whose cattle are in Plumas County during this time of year,” said Butte County Farm Bureau Executive Director Colleen Cecil.
https://www.chicoer.com/2019/08/09/devastator-plaguing-butte-county-ranchers/
EPA won’t approve labels that say Roundup chemical causes cancer [U.S. News & World Report]
The Environmental Protection Agency announced Thursday that it will not approve labels on products containing glyphosate that link the chemical to cancer. The move is directed at California. In 2017, the state declared the chemical, which is the main active ingredient in the weed killer Roundup, a carcinogen. Roundup producer Monsanto challenged the ruling in federal court, and a judge has temporarily blocked the state from requiring the labels as the lawsuit continues….”We will not allow California’s flawed program to dictate federal policy,” EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler said in a statement.
