A new study by Nobel prize winning chemist Paul J. Crutzen reports that modern farming methods used to grow biofuels in the United States and Europe actually release more greenhouse gases than they save.

San Francisco Chronicle

We love fast food, whether it’s from a drive-through or a grocery aisle, and it’s really bad for us. It’s bad for our health, our culture, the environment. In short, it’s unsustainable.

But our once-diverse food lore and skills have been scattered to the four winds. Our taste buds have been jammed on salt, sugar and every conceivable molecular permutation of corn. We literally eat petroleum-derived substances, and ask for more.

The Guardian

At least 200 million people around the world risk their health daily by eating food grown using untreated waste water, some of which may be contaminated with heavy metals and raw sewage, according to major study of 53 world cities.

Urban farmers in 80% of the cities surveyed were found to be using untreated waste water, but the study said they also provided vital food for burgeoning cities at a time of unprecedented water scarcity and the worst food crisis in 30 years.

San Francisco Chronicle

We can do more with less. Nations in drier climates around the world and forward-thinking farmers in California already are using less water to grow more crops – with greater profits. It is time for California to implement economic and environmental policies that encourage farmers to use water more efficiently, both for the good of the environment and to sustain a robust agricultural sector.