On breeding less thirsty plants and being a Bee visiting editor

Plants can be bred to use less water

In ancient Greece there was a saying: “Nothing comes from nothing.” You get this when you peer into any one of California’s many nearly empty reservoirs. In the middle of the frying pan is the California farmer, who must survive today with scant water while pondering a future with even less water.

For farmers, there must be another Greek saying: “more from less.”

While progress has been made with farming practices that use less water such as micro-sprinkler irrigation, our crops themselves still demand a lot of water. Today’s poster child is the almond, which makes great money but needs up to 4 feet of water per year.

One common suggestion to reduce water is switching to crops that demand less water. Unfortunately, these alternative crops are usually not economically sustainable. At the end of the day, we need high-value crops that demand less water.

In fact, we can improve our existing crops to demand less water. New scientific techniques such as marker-assisted selection can speed and improve conventional plant breeding by pollination. Trees and other crops can be bred that are water-efficient, drought-resistant, heat-tolerant, salt-tolerant and have better flavor. Because they’re bred through pollination, these conventionally bred crops are not genetically modified – sidestepping that trapdoor.

Putting a pencil to the opportunity, start with a breeding program costing less than $10 million from start to finish. Considering the almond and its 1 million acres, halving its water demand to 2 feet would save 2 million acre-feet per year, more water than would be held in the proposed Sites Reservoir and its $3.3 billion price tag. Which option makes more business sense to you?

Since successful farming requires a miserly streak, why aren’t farmers demanding plant breeding programs as vocally as they are dams?

Getting an education in Valley

When the opportunity came to join The Bee’s visiting-editor program, I jumped at the chance. Having moved to the Central Valley from Oregon nearly four years ago, I still felt as if I were new to the area and wished to become more involved in my new town. I was thrilled at the idea of being able to learn more about the communities around me, both the city in which I work (Modesto) and the city where I live (Turlock).

The last three months with The Bee have been very educational. From meeting with the U.S. Department of Transportation on railroad tank cars to meeting with Assemblyman Adam Gray, to in-depth discussions on the water shortage to meeting with the mayor of Turlock, it’s been a whirlwind of information and connections.

Learning more about the Central Valley and the aspirations of its residents has been enlightening. Additionally, being asked to contribute commentary to a well-known newspaper and having the chance to see my name in print each month with my own editorial piece was thrilling. Not many have an opportunity to write for a newspaper and I encourage anyone who wishes to become more involved in the community and want the chance to write for their local newspaper to reach out to The Bee and become a part of the visiting editor program.

This story was originally published July 4, 2015 at 12:41 PM with the headline "On breeding less thirsty plants and being a Bee visiting editor."