Growing Returns

A multidimensional view of ag tech’s impacts

By Dan Kaiser / Bio / Published: March 6, 2023

New research from Environmental Defense Fund, “Agriculture Technology Discovery Report,” provides a high-level overview of how four technology fields — artificial intelligence (AI), robotics and automation, biologicals and genetics — can be valuable tools in agricultural operations and contribute to four agroecological goals: reducing water use, supporting soil and plant health, controlling pests and diseases, and reducing agricultural greenhouse gas emissions.

This multidimensional lens is uncommon. Industry reports often focus on maximizing yield, and not the entire agroecological picture. Yet, using technology as a vehicle to drive both yield and ecological benefits is essential as society works to increase food production in a changing climate without increasing environmental impacts.

Here are several intersections between technology and agroecology that EDF will be exploring further. Read More »

Posted in Uncategorized / Tagged ag tech, agroecology, artificial intelligence, robotics | Comments are closed

Report shows how nuts and managed vegetation are a winning combination for California growers

By Dan Kaiser / Bio / Published: February 22, 2021

California is an agricultural powerhouse, producing billions of pounds of nuts in 2020 and tree nut acreage continuing to increase year after year.

The bountiful Central Valley provides fruit and nuts to the majority of the U.S., but these orchards offer additional potential that growers have yet to reap.

A new report, Managing Vegetation for Agronomic and Ecological Benefits in California Nut Orchards [PDF], details opportunities for growers to build a more resilient agricultural system in California — with both sustainability and profitability in mind. Read More »

Posted in Uncategorized / Tagged conservation, cover crops, ecosystems, managed vegetation, new report, sustainable agriculture, tree nut | Comments are closed

Farmer interest in conservation is growing, but barriers remain high. Here’s how we can overcome them.

By Dan Kaiser / Bio / Published: January 6, 2021

“Are you interested in planting hedgerows of native plants on your farm, but aren’t quite sure how to get started?”

That was the question Rex Defour, the California regional director for the National Center for Appropriate Technology, posed to farmers in a blog earlier this year.

The response? A flood of calls and emails from interested farmers. In a matter of weeks, 90 growers from across the country signed up to plant over 23 miles of hedgerows. Read More »

Posted in Wildlife Protection / Tagged conservation, EQIP, flood risk, hedgerows, pollination, USDA | Read 1 Response

A new kind of supply chain initiative will help pollinators and farmers alike

By Dan Kaiser / Bio / Published: August 25, 2020

California produces the majority of the world’s almonds, with nearly 1.53 million acres dedicated to almond orchards. However, less than 20,000 of those acres are bee-friendly verified with pollinator habitat and reduced pesticide use.

As bees and other important pollinator populations decline sharply, it is imperative to change the trajectory of pollinator and biodiversity loss in key agricultural landscapes — and one food company is launching an effort to do just that. Read More »

Posted in Wildlife Protection / Tagged almond, conservation, habitat, KIND, pollinator, supply chain, tree nut | Comments are closed

Golf courses planted 1,000 acres to save the monarch butterfly. Here’s why.

By Dan Kaiser / Bio / Published: August 18, 2020

In 2017, my EDF colleagues and I partnered with Audubon International to team up with a seemingly unlikely ally in pollinator conservation — golf courses.

Together, we launched Monarchs in the Rough, a program that partners with golf courses to restore monarch butterfly and other pollinator habitat in out-of-play areas. Read More »

Posted in Wildlife Protection / Tagged golf courses, monarch butterfly, monarchs in the rough, pollinators | Comments are closed

These farms planted wildflowers to attract bugs to control pests. And it’s working.

By Dan Kaiser / Bio / Published: June 23, 2020

Last fall, two farms in California’s Sacramento Valley planted a wildflower cover crop mix as part of a commitment to restore habitat within 325 acres of pecan orchards. The farms, Pacific Gold Agriculture and Bypass Farms, are participating in a project called “Orchards Alive” in hopes that wildflowers will attract pollinators and naturally reduce pest pressure.

Orchards Alive came about thanks to a $3 million monarch and pollinator recovery bill (AB 2421) designed to establish habitat restoration projects for important pollinator species facing steep population losses. Read More »

Posted in Wildlife Protection / Tagged aphids, california, farmer, ladybird beetles, ladybugs, orchards, pecans, pest, soil health | Comments are closed

What are cover crops doing on a pecan orchard? Hopefully attracting bugs.

By Dan Kaiser / Bio / Published: January 27, 2020

You don’t typically hear farmers saying they want to attract bugs to their farm, but that’s what a unique conservation project in California’s Sacramento Valley is doing – determining whether cover crops can attract more at-risk native pollinators, like monarch butterflies, in addition to insects that serve as pest control, like ladybugs.

The project came about thanks to a $3-million monarch and pollinator recovery bill (AB 2421) designed to establish habitat restoration projects for important pollinator species facing steep population losses. Read More »

Posted in Wildlife Protection / Tagged california, habitat, monarch butterfly, orchard, pecan, pollinator, soil health, wildflower | Read 2 Responses

We need to get creative to protect wildlife in the face of climate risk

By Dan Kaiser / Bio / Published: May 10, 2017

The Swainson's hawk will need to be protected from the effects of climate change

A pilot project for Swainson’s hawk is creating high-quality nesting habitat on a 4,000-acre farm in San Joaquin County.

Landowners and environmentalists both grapple with the same question: In the midst of uncertainty, what is the most effective way to reconcile short-term and long-term needs for wildlife habitat?

For example, it can be risky to invest in permanent conservation on a property vulnerable to climate change, but failing to protect existing habitat in the face of uncertainty is an existential threat to species like the Swainson’s hawk.

Fortunately, new habitat accounting tools are emerging that bring more certainty to conservation planning, which helps landowners make effective management decisions for their property, helps biologists design effective restoration plans and ultimately helps wildlife thrive. Read More »

Posted in Climate Resilience, Habitat Exchange, Wildlife Protection / Tagged AB 2087, adaptation, california, central valley, central valley habitat exchange, conservation easement, habitat quantification tool, NatureServe, Resource Conservation Investment Strategy, San Francisco-San Joaquin Bay Delta, San Joaquin County, Swainson's hawk | Comments are closed

How can we better target public funds for wildlife conservation? Look to Elliott Ranch

By Dan Kaiser / Bio / Published: June 30, 2016

The Swainson’s hawk was listed as a threatened species in California in 1983 due to loss of habitat and decreased numbers across the state.

This week, the Delta Conservancy, a California state agency, awarded Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) a grant of $380,000 to implement a habitat enhancement project for the state-listed Swainson’s hawk on Elliott Ranch in West Sacramento, near the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. The grant is part of California’s public water bond funding being managed by the Delta Conservancy to restore wildlife habitat in the Central Valley.

The Elliott Ranch project will enhance Swainson’s hawk habitat on 300 acres. Specifically, the project will expand the hawks’ hunting grounds by restoring habitat for their prey and converting existing crops to bird-friendly pasture.

Central to the project will be the use of a habitat quantification tool (HQT) designed by EDF and local stakeholders to evaluate the current quality of habitat for Swainson’s hawk and compare restoration alternatives to optimize habitat outcomes. This will be the first time the HQT will be used as a mechanism to help allocate public funding to the most high value habitat improvements in California.

Improved accounting, improved outcomes Read More »

Posted in Habitat Exchange, Wildlife Protection / Tagged Ann Hayden, california, central valley, central valley habitat exchange, conservation, Dan Kaiser, Delta Conservancy, ecosystems, Elliott Ranch, environmental defense fund, habitat exchange, habitat quantification tool, HQT, Proposition 1, Swainson's hawk, water, water bond, western water | Comments are closed

How California farmers can help salmon survive, and what’s in it for them

By Dan Kaiser / Bio / Published: March 2, 2016

California’s Chinook salmon are large fish that can grow up to 58 inches in length and weigh up to 129 pounds. But most salmon do not grow this large, especially in drought conditions, lacking sufficient habitat. (Credit: seafoodwatch.org)

Already an endangered species, California salmon populations have reached record lows.

Fisheries officials with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration found that just 3 percent of this generation of winter-run Chinook salmon survived in the Sacramento River. This is a record low survival rate – more than 10 times worse than the survival rate before the California drought.

How does drought affect salmon?

Salmon at any stage need cold water to survive, and severe drought conditions have put a chokehold on the state’s water supply, which relies on snow melt from the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Without this snow melt, there is less cold water flowing into California’s waterways, creating higher than normal water temperatures in the Sacramento River.

But it’s not just the lack of cold water that’s affecting salmon populations. They also lack sufficient habitat to grow and thrive. Even if the drought ended today, they would still be in peril without adequate habitat. Read More »

Posted in Habitat Exchange, Wildlife Protection / Tagged agriculture, california, central valley, central valley habitat exchange, Chinook salmon, drought, ecosystems, farms, habitat exchange, knaggs ranch, nigiri project, sacramento river, salmon, water use, western water | Comments are closed