California

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Sign the Petition – Give Californians the #1 water-saving tip!

Got Drought?

I found a great website – Truth or Drought – that is making the connection between animal-based diets & the devastating water shortages.

They have created a petition on Change.org to get California’s statewide water-saving program Save Our Water to address the #1 way residents can actually save the most water – not eating meat or dairy products.

Despite their hashtag #EveryDropCounts, their water-saving tips focus only on household use, which accounts for 4% of California’s water footprint. But a whopping 47% of drought-stricken California’s water footprint is associated with meat and dairy products, per Pacific Institute’s 2012 report California’s Water Footprint. “Almost half of the average Californian’s water footprint is associated with the consumption of meat and dairy products.” Their report also clearly shows that animal feed has the greatest water requirement of any crop in California, far more than almonds and avocados, as well as any other human use.

They created a graphic showing how much water is used for animal feed, more than any other activity. This graphic doesn’t show how much water is used for feeding, slaughtering and processing the animals this feed goes into. One dairy cow consumes up to 20 gallons per day.

CA Total Water Use
The good news is that some California water districts are addressing this issue.

State water districts and public utilities companies are finally addressing this. The Municipal Water District of Orange County has posted a graphic on their Facebook page showing that meat products are the top water wasters, as well as a tip to adopt Meatless Mondays to save water. San Francisco Water Power Sewer created a lesson plan specifically about the need to reduce meat product consumption to save water: “The lower we eat on the food chain (i.e. the more plant-based foods we eat versus animal-based foods) the less water, energy, and other natural resources we use.”

If #EveryDropReallyCounts our State needs to tell its citizens the truth about animal agriculture and its impact on the drought.

That starts with you signing the petition and sharing it with your friends.

 

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Don’t Frack CA

Dont Frack CA

Over 4000 people went to Sacramento today to send a message to Governor Jerry Brown and the California legislature – Stop Fracking in CA. They came in buses from as far away as San Diego in the south and Humboldt County in the north.

There were some great speakers, including these two first year students at UC Berkeley whose message was “Don’t Frack Our Future.”

Halfway through the rally, we encircled the Capitol Building and then returned for more speakers and singing.

If you are wondering how this is related to food, it has to do with the dual impacts of fracking on water.

In the midst of the worst drought in California history, the fracking industry is using millions of gallons of water as part of the process of fracking. This water is contaminated by the chemicals they use and it has to be buried deep underground, permanently removing this precious resource from other uses.

According to the industry, burying this water won’t impact ground water. However, no one knows for sure if that is true. California has many geologic faults and many believe that the chemicals will seep through cracks and contaminate the ground water used for, among other things, agriculture. California’s Central Valley grows the produce that feeds millions of Americans. When/if the ground water is contaminated, it will be too late to go back.

If you live in CA – write or call the Governor’s office (916-445-2841), call your Senator and Assembly member and ask them to support the Moratorium bill SB 1132, and get involved. Find out more information at Don’t Frack California and Californians Against Fracking.

As one of the signs I saw today said, “We can live without oil, but we can’t live without water.”

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What’s In Season In Your Area? There’s a Map for That

seasonal_map

I found this great resource – thanks to a tweet from @TopIngredients retweeted by @veggiebeet – on the Epicurious site. It shows what produce are at their peak in your state during the 12 months of the year – at least in those areas where there is a yearly growing season.

There are links from the list of what’s fresh to recipes, cooking tips and more.

What a great resource. Now that I’m living in California – where we have year-round farmers’ markets – I’m looking forward to fresh, local produce all year.

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World Veg Festival – Sept 28-29 – San Francisco

wvf_card

One of the great things about living near San Francisco is being able to attend events like this one. This festival commemorates World Vegetarian Day October 1st and it sounds like it will be great. Speakers, demonstrations and lots of vegan and vegetarian food.

Check out the website and plan on attending.

The National Heirloom Expo – Sept 10-13 – Santa Rosa, CA

The National Heirloom Exposition is a not-for-profit event centered around the pure food movement, heirloom vegetables, and anti-GMO activism. The second annual event held mid-September 2012 in Santa Rosa, California drew more than 14,000 people from around the country and beyond. With more than 100 speakers and 300 natural food vendors, the event was the largest gathering in pure food history! The Heirloom Expo has gained incredible interest among home growers, farmers, school groups and the general public–so much so that it is being called the “World’s Fair of Pure Food”!

The Heirloom Expo