Focus The Nation -Agricultural Seminar

Dr. David Headrick - Professor, Horticulture and Crop Science

Impact of Insects
- Speaks on how climate change will affect us
- Insects will expand and contract area range due to the changes in temperature
- Incests also change how much they grow based on temperature and climate
- We could potentially face an incest invasion, not like biblical plagues
- Insect pest cause severe damage to crops 2nd highest rankings of crop loss only to weeds
- USDA is monitoring where pests go so that they can track and prevent them
- There is a giant need to have an abatement district set up to protect when insects arrive

Dr. Stu Styles - Director, Cal Poly Irrigation Training and Research Center

Impact on Water Resources
- Reduced snow pack
- Earlier snow melt means harder to control water
- The water temperature will rise and impact the ecosystem
- Sea levels will rise and the delta will rise and affect the levee's and flooding impact
- 2/3 of all drinking water in California comes from the delta system
- Increased drought will occur
- The current snow pack which is 15 million Acre feet, and will be reduced by 25%
- Growers will need to change their cropping plans to accommodate for water levels
- We need to understand our carbon footprint
- Need for farmers to switch from Diesel engines to Electric engines
- Need to improve water delivery system
- Need to switch over to drip irrigation
- Drip irrigation will increase food output for input of water

Ryan Rich - Four Elements Farm

- It is essential to have groundwater
- There is a great deal of focus that needs to be paid attention to water conservation
- Planted many of his crops in areas that were already wet areas on his land
- 2005 the cucumber beetles destroyed his crops
- very important to know what is occurring during the seasons so that farmers know when the best time to plant their crops
- Uses dry farming techniques
- When there was a freeze he only lost 1 tree out of 400 (large applause)