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Lehigh Valley PA

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The Future of Agriculture in the Lehigh Valley

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A Survival Manual –

With the coming of peak oil, transportation and production costs for food will probably skyrocket.

The burning of fossil fuels contributes to global warming. There is, therefore, good reason to localize food production and distribution to compensate for possible prohibitive food costs as well as to reduce emissions. This can have an energizing effect on the local economy as well as providing fresher and healthier food products. If we do not plan properly this could develop into a chaotic time as people make the transition to a new way of doing things.

Given that Peak Oil and Global Warming are upon us, we need to use energy sources that are renewable and generated locally. If, however, we use farmland for growing crops for biodiesel we begin to eliminate valuable land that could be used and needed for food .Biodiesel from growing crops should be seen as transitional .Some farmers are probably going to choose to grow for fuel but we should encourage preserving farmland for food as more important, encourage exploration of other sources of renewable energy ,as well as, emphasizing reduction of consumption patterns… biomass waste, landfills, and algae [grown in ponds and vats or underground] are some examples of alternatives.[more on this in a separate document].

We need to have a plan for the people of the Lehigh Valley which includes a wide variety of options so as not to be dependent on a single solution which might fail. These options need to be developed so that they serve multiple purposes and are supported by other elements in the plan.

A Bioregional approach

It is important that we view our living areas as bioregions rather than just cities, towns, counties etc. We need to encourage local governing bodies and ad hoc groups within a bioregion to work together to discuss bioregional issues. Groups such as the Sierra club, the Alliance For Sustainable Communities-Lehigh Valley ,Clean Water Action,Lehigh Valley Beyond Oil and the Green Valley Coalition work locally to deal with issues on a regional basis. Governmental groups like the Department of Conservation of Natural Resources could,also, be included in discussions. We should encourage local municipalities and county executives to set up Environmental Action Committees to advise them on environmental issues. A Regional EAC could be developed so that local groups could better communicate with each other.

In July of 2005 the 9th Continental Bioregional Congress was held at Earthhaven Ecovillage in North Carolina for people developing a bioregional consciousness. The tenth Continental Bioregional Congress will be held July 12-20,2007 at Grailville near the Miami River in the central Ohio River valley bioregion. Grailville is the location for the future Heartland Ecovillage. Representatives from the Lehigh Valley could plan to attend the next one when it is scheduled.

Questions:

  • How will increasing costs/declining supplies of fuel, fertilizer, and pesticides affect food production?
  • Will an impending food crisis result in land grabs or corporate buying of land?
  • Do we need a valley-wide system of food-banks to provide for emergencies such as an unusually short growing season, a disastrous late frost, hurricane damage or severe flooding?

Farmland Preservation

2. Farmland preservation and prevention of sprawl is essential to these recommendations. Individuals and groups are working on these issues in the Lehigh Valley. We should connect with these groups to discuss strategy that is consistent with the rest of these recommendations. We
should encourage others to join with these groups to preserve farmland. For a list, check the Alliance’s ‘Directory of Organizations That Promote Sustainable Communities’.

  • promotion of support for family farms is crucial
  • promoting sustainable family farming as a profitable activity is essential to attracting more people to do this work
  • promoting the training of immigrant farmers as a means of building the farming base as well as providing work for immigrants. Many immigrants already have an agricultural background and could provide valuable expertise.

Questions:

  • Could a change in local tax structure {e.g. taxing at current use and/or a lower tax rate for agriculture} help existing farms enough to encourage the retention {and reestablishment} of local farms before a crisis occurs?
  • How is farmland assessed and taxed now?
  • What have the other states {e.g.Vt.} done to preserve small farms?
  • How can we assist farmers in improving energy efficiency?
  • Encourage waste biomass to biofuel?
  • What training resources are needed?
  • How can the attention of the Penn State Extension Services be focused on sustainable agriculture to meet local needs?
  • How much can their present services including the Master Gardeners program help?
  • Do we have the farmland capacity to feed the existing population of the Lehigh Valley?
  • What is the total farm acreage in the Lehigh Valley?
  • How much is used for each individual foodstuff?
  • How many people can be fed from this existing farm acreage if there is little or n fossil-fuel fertilizer, or pesticides?
  • How much arable land can be reclaimed from other uses?
  • In what areas should we plan for and encourage more agriculture?
  • What land suitable for agriculture is currently not in use or is not being used productively?
  • Which agricultural crops should we encourage or discourage?
  • Will we need additional land to raise crops?
  • How much variance is there in the resources [land and energy]required to produce different foods?
  • What special needs do children have?
  • Can some of the problems be alleviated by encouraging morewomen to breastfeed?
  • How will we assure that pregnant women,infants and children have access to appropriate nutrition and healthy food?

Organic and Biodynamic Farming

3. We should support organic and biodynamic farming and permaculture projects and education throughout the Lehigh Valley. Governments at all levels could make monies available to educate potential new organic farmers and to assist non organic farmers to make the transition. They could provide monies to purchase or lease land for organic growing, and maybe for low interest loans or grants to get organic farm businesses off the ground. Tax relief would also be beneficial. Some nonorganic farmers do a good job of regenerating the soil but encouraging non-oil based agricultural projects makes more sense in the age of peak oil.Rodale has done research that indicates that organic farming does a far better job than conventional farming to sequester carbon and therefore helps to alleviate global warming. Research shows that organic produce contains more nutrients than non organic and that small family farms are more efficient than large factory farms. Pesticides show up in fruits and vegetables and have been shown to negatively affect our health. Pesticide and weed killer use, even for home flower and vegetable gardens, has been linked to Parkinson’s, some cancers, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

Permaculture is the study of the web of natural interconnections in order to design systems that will produce outputs for humans with the least amount of interference or damage. Its principles include stacking of functions, multiple support systems, planting of tree guilds or families, and ethical use of tools and equipment. Permaculture designs minimize fossil fuel use.

Biodynamic farming — biodynamics — is a part of the work of Rudolph Steiner known as anthroposophy, a new approach to science which integrates precise observation of natural phenomena, clear thinking and knowledge of the spirit. It offers an account of the spiritual history of the earth as a living being and describes the evolution of the constitution of humanity and the kingdoms of nature.

Traditional native american agriculture includes chanting, praying, drumming, smudging, giving thanks to the great spirit, blessing the seeds, three sisters planting etc.

Resources:

Questions:

  • What specific information is available on how permaculture/biodynamic farming affects total production and whether they reduce demands for energy, water,etc?
  • What is the range of incentives needed to convince farmers to go organic?
  • What is the effect on local farmers of large corporations’ ability to coopt the term ” organic”?
  • What do existing farmers think about going organic?
  • What more can be done to support more organic farming in the Lehigh Valley
  • Does production of chemical fertilizer,pesticides etc contribute to global warming?

Community Gardens

4. We should encourage local governments to find space for and promote community gardens to help localize the food supply. Organic, biodynamic and permaculture projects are best emphasized to reduce oil/gas based fertilizers and pesticides. These gardens provide health benefits from the outdoor work and the eating of fresh local food, local probation officers have found that gardens are rehabilitative and horticultural therapists have used these for therapy. Transportation to the gardens could be arranged so people can maintain them. Canning and drying facilities and root cellars could be established at the community level .[Canning and drying do use a lot of energy so educating people on drying in hot attics etc at home or digging preservation pits in the backyard would also be helpful.]The following municipalities have community gardens: Allentown, Emmaus, Lower Macungie township, and Salisbury Township, plus Lehigh County. However, this is probably not enough to feed the Lehigh Valley. American Community Garden Association, 877-275-2242

Communities (residents) can:

  • identify neighborhood institutions, organizations, politicians, community development coordinators that could get things started, secure land for long-term use at a reasonable fee and assist with insurance
  • Create a core group of people to identify space that could be donated for a garden, raise funds, work on design, organize volunteers, establish guidelines, obtain equipment and maintain the land
  • Reach out to people with nongardening skills such as grant and flyer writing, light construction, planning
  • Connect with Master Gardeners for volunteer assistance, the Penn State Cooperative Extension for info and supplies, and the Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture or the Rodale Farm for organic advice
  • develop a fund raising strategy that involves the community
  • join the ACGA [above} for help and advice
  • connect with others in the Lehigh Valley who are doing it

Some possible sources of grants:

Get information about the value of community gardens in the April/May 2005, issue of Organic Gardening — this magazine has regular updates on community gardens around the country