The development of new solar farms demands a limited and precious resource – land – which is also critical to ranchers and graziers raising livestock. This week, we spoke to Stacie Peterson, Executive Director of the American Solar Grazing Association, about solar grazing, an approach to multi-purpose land use that supports clean energy, ecological health, economic growth, and happy sheep.
Chaos wheat, “climate blend,” is a new type of flour composed of a variety of extreme weather resistant varieties of wheat to be more resilient to climate change. Despite its deviation from traditional wheat, it is shown to uphold the same baking quality (in regards to taste, texture, and rise). It was developed because climate change has been endangering wheat crops and this is not only affecting the supply and demand of wheat, but also creating intense price fluctuations. We spoke to Robin Morgan, a researcher at Washington State University’s Breadlab, about why these climate resilient crops may be the future of bread.
Weather complications have always been a major concern to farmers around the world. Crops’ frequent exposure to freezing temperatures or extreme heat often prevent farms from operating at optimal capacities, with farmers having to devote extra resources in irrigation and sheltering to counter the effects of crop loss. Agrivoltaics, the co-location of solar panels and regenerative agriculture to help maintain crop yields and protect biodiversity while simultaneously increasing solar output, emerges as a promising solution. We invited Byron Kominek, owner and manager of Jack’s Solar Garden in Colorado, to share with us about spearheading sustainability-minded land utilization and agricultural practices.