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Sacramento County Agriculture, Food & Gardening Articles



Image caption: RCDs look after the land, whether it’s used for grazing, growing, or getting out into nature.
California Dirt

What do resource conservation districts protect? Pretty much everything that’s worth saving.

Image caption: California’s three-year-old legal cannabis industry is already struggling. Here’s why.
The Crisis in California’s Legal Cannabis Industry, Explained

Cumbersome state bureaucracy and competition from their illegal counterparts has made life perilous for California’s nascent legal cannabis businesses.

Image caption: Some small composting facilities, made necessary by a methane-reduction law,  have been set up in or near community gardens.
Compost Belongs in the Garden

Californians Against Waste was one of the main advocates behind SB 1383, which requires California to divert 75 percent of its organic waste from landfills. California Local talked to CAW’s Nick Lapis to learn more about what it does and …

Image caption: At the dump, food waste is methane-producing garbage. At a farm, it's a valuable part of the food web.
Back to the Land, Not the Landfill

In 2022, California trash haulers will begin turning millions of tons of methane-emitting organic waste into a new cash crop: compost.

Featured

RCDs look after the land, whether it’s used for grazing, growing, or getting out into nature.
California Dirt
RCDs were created to avoid a repeat of the Dust Bowl. Now they work with landowners to preserve the air, water and natural habitats that sustain us all.
Dairy products are California’s top agricultural commodity, but the industry is often criticized for its impact on the environment.
Sustainable Sustenance
Greener ways to feed the world’s growing population
Fresh and dried fruit, wine, nuts and more can be found at Casa De Fruta, a venerable stop for drivers traversing Pacheco Pass.
Roadside Attractions
Apples and berries, steaks and dairy...and much more
They help feed the whole country, but life for California’s farm workers remains a struggle.
How California Feeds the Country
California, a state known for high-tech and show business glitz, is also America’s farming powerhouse.
How California reclamation districts turned millions of acres of wetlands into fertile agricultural land, starting in the earliest days of the Gold Rush.
Reclamation Districts: Turning ‘Swamps’ Into Farmland
From its earliest days as a state, California has been trying to turn marshes into productive land.
Since the Gold Rush era, land reclamation has cost California 90 percent of its wetlands.
How Land Reclamation Hurts California’s Environment
The hidden price tag of “reclaiming” swamps and marshes as usable land.
The 1965 law known as the Williamson Act has been responsible for keeping about half of California's farmland out of the hands of developers.
The Williamson Act: How the Law That Protects California’s Farmland Works
More than half of California farmland is under contracts that prevent its development.
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