Re: [GBlist] farming or housing?

[Jim Coate <jbc@coate.org>]

Chris Koehn wrote:
> Guess I don't know exactly where I'm going here, except to say that farming-
> the way it's largely practiced in this country- is far from bucolic, and
> that sometimes I think all this hoo ha about eating up farm land for houses
> is perhaps overstated, and may not be such a bad thing in the end.. What do
> you think?

Hi Chris -

There are probably as many answers as there are farms, but... I think 
your comparison of the mega farm and the local organic farm/CSA is one 
of the key factors: size!

Another key factor is that I think it is generally the smaller "family" 
farms that are being bought up for housing developments; that is the 
very farms with the most potential to practice small-scale sustainable 
agriculture. The average farmer is on the older side. As this generation 
passes on, the children (if any) either have long since left for the 
bright lights of the big city or if they want to keep the farm they are 
hit with an inherentance tax based on the market value of the land 
(driven by those house developers) and they can't afford the tax so are 
forced to sell.

As Geoff noted: "the big impact of suburban sprawl is the emissions from 
all the automobile engines". Add to this that without local farms, food 
now travels 2500 miles or so to get to your plate... and all those 
trucks have engines as well.

For another view, check out books like "Family Friendly Farming" by Joel 
Salatin. But I don't think there are any simple answers.

And keep suporting your local CSA!


_________
Jim Coate
1992 Chevy S10
1970's Elec-Trak
http://www.eeevee.com


______________________________________________________________________
This greenbuilding dialogue is sponsored by REPP/CREST, creator of
Solstice http://www.crest.org, and BuildingGreen, Inc., publisher of
Environmental Building News and GreenSpec http://www.BuildingGreen.com
______________________________________________________________________