LOSS OF FARM LAND DUE TO OVERPOPULATION

In a recent edition of the Wall Street Journal, I noticed an article entitled "Fewer Farms to Feed Local Appetite." This article explored the loss of farm land in the Bay Area. In recent years, much of the Bay Area has lost large tracts of farmland in order to accommodate the ever increasing need for housing brought on by the growing population.

According to this article, between 2000 and 2008, Alameda County lost more than 12000 acres of farmland, 6% of its total available. In Santa Clara County, farm acreage dropped more than 5% between 2005 and 2008. Farm acreage in Contra Costa and San Mateo Counties has also declined. A 2008 study by SAGE, Sustainable Agricultural Education, a non profit group dedicated to sustainable local farming, revealed that 22% of Bay Area land was used for urban development between 1990 and 2004 occurred on high quality farm land.

According to Sibella Kraus, president of SAGE, the demand for local food is rising, but the state and local governments have not created incentives to prevent farmland loss. According to Gregory Gee, assistant agricultural commissioner in Alameda County, farmers blame the loss of farmland on developers whose primary interest is the revenue generated by new home sales.

To generate support for local farming, officials from San Francisco’s parks and health departments have been advocating for the establishment of urban gardens within small city lots. Alemany Farm is an excellent example of San Francisco’s urban farm movement. In 2005, Mr. Antonio Roman-Alcala established Alemany Farm. This farm is located adjacent to the 280 freeway and serves Alameda counties residents.

Local farms are also important to the environmental health because they bring consumers closer to the food they purchase. Local farming negates the need to import food from areas that are many miles from where the food is consumed. The practice of shipping food long distances is environmentally unsound as it taxes natural resources and produces harmful fumes from the use of petroleum products necessary for transport. Shipping food is unnecessary. For example, many California based grocery stores offer apples from Washington. This is an unnecessary practice as California has a climate conducive to growing apples.

Locally grown food is also important to our physical health. I have often heard people lament that they don’t eat vegetables because they taste bitter. I agree, vegetables are bitter when picked before they are unripe or grown too an excessive size, practices that are necessary to prevent bruising when shipped. I remember my first home grown, sun ripened tomato. I was shocked to discover that tomatoes are in fact neither mealy nor bland, but rather sweet and delicious. Shipping food from far off places is unproductive and unnecessary.

Long ago, I abandoned my local mega mart. Instead, I make it a practice to patronize my local farmer’s market. I recognize that many farmers markets are not open year round, especially those in rural areas. In those instances, I choose seasonal, locally grown produce from my local natural food store.

The loss of useable farmland is not specific to the Bay Area, rather it is becoming an epidemic, especially in industrialized nations. It is just one of the many consequences of over population by humans. I have done my part to reduce our over population problems by declining to have children, and by purchasing locally grown, humanely raised, organic produce and animal products. I urge my fellow humans to find ways that they can contribute to the health of planet on which we all depend on for life.

References

Scheck, J. Fewer Farms to Feed Local Appetite. (2010, March 11). The Washington Post, p. A11A.