Balancing Food Production with Green Energy The geography of the
San Joaquin Valley – one of the most transformed landscapes in
the country – continues to be in flux as the demands for green,
renewable energy threaten its highly productive farmlands.
Landscape level change is nothing new for the region. Before the
dams in the Sierra Nevada and infrastructure of canals on the
valley floor, the largest lake west of the Mississippi River
once covered more than 600 square miles between Bakersfield and
Corcoran. Once drained, this same region became one of the most
productive agricultural places in the world. Today, however,
with oil prices rising and the ecological costs of fossil fuel
use weighing upon our environment, this same landscape is being
considered for numerous, large-scale solar photovoltaic
projects. These solar projects will, at least temporarily,
convert farmland into solar panels. Some see the transition
leading to the permanent conversion of farmland to more
industrial uses. How should we utilize