Farming

Degradation of soils has brought down many human civilizations. Our current industrial agriculture practices threaten the future of human existence. A 50-year farm bill is needed to guide policy on a more sustainable path, according to this oped.

The next president should take farming seriously and personally, according to Neal Pierce, who writes that rethinking the scale of food production is smart for regions, the environment and the economy.

Preserving farmland has always been a major issue in the U.S. But as Bill Fulton discusses, the local economic results don't quite justify the efforts.

Around Los Angeles' Skid Row, vertical farms have been installed on walls. Its project leaders note that it not only promotes locally grown foods, but it also beautifies areas that "would otherwise just be concrete and steel."

The suburbs of Tewksbury, MA, a quaint New England town, have developed uncomfortably close to one of the largest pig farms in the state.

What is your county doing to preserve open spaces important to your community? And is it effective? If the answers to those questions are "not enough" and "no", read on and take these effective strategies to your lawmakers.