Edward Thompson Jr.: Drought hurts, but sprawl ruins farmland
Re “Water Crisis: Drought cuts $2.7 billion in ag output, report says” (Page A1, Aug. 18): The economic toll of fallowing more than a half-million acres of farmland in California this year because of the drought is staggering. However, American Farmland Trust finds it worth noting that while this land has been temporarily taken out of production, California has permanently lost more than 1 million acres of farmland to urban sprawl in the last 25 years. This land will never come back into production.
Certainly, water is critical to agriculture and the drought is an immediate concern to all Californians. But water isn’t the only issue threatening the future of farms in California. The needless loss of farmland to development is at least as much of a threat to our state’s agriculture industry and everyone who depends on its harvests.
Edward Thompson, Jr., California Director, American Farmland Trust, Sacramento
This story was originally published August 20, 2015 at 6:40 PM with the headline "Edward Thompson Jr.: Drought hurts, but sprawl ruins farmland."