The Central Valley of California is huge, 450 miles long, and it feeds America. Containing less than 1% of total U.S. farmland, it provides 8% of the food crop, measured by value. By some estimations, it proides HALF of our country's fruits and vegetables. They grow virtually every non-tropical crop here.
The air quality is terrible. As we were driving through, I checked some weather info and found that particulates were at "unhealthy" levels. It was like China, when the Olympic runners couldn't run in the smog. I could feel it in my chest. Never mind all the other reasons I'm concerned about our food supply and the farming practices of corporate agriculture, is anyone worried about how the lettuce and tomatoes can breathe this air?
The problem is that the Central Valley is wide and flat and has mountains on both sides (that's why they call it a valley, of course) and the pollutants from all the cars (mostly) and the agriculture and petro-chemical industries gets trapped by the inversion layer.
My recommendation is to do what you can to rely a little less on this food source. Start going to your local farmers market and plant a few veggies in your backyard.
Here's tonight's sunset over a CAFO, viewed through the smog.
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