Tule Trust seeks input from small farmers looking to expand
A free workshop focused on helping small farmers explore ways to expand operations will be held from 3 to 5 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 28 in Tipton.
The Tule Basin Land & Water Conservation Trust is sponsoring “Keeping Farmers on the Land: Identifying Practical Solutions for Small-Scale Farmers Under SGMA,” along with the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources Extension and the Sierra Resource Conservation District.
The workshop will be held at the Sociedade Portuguesa do Divino Espírito Santo Hall, or S.P.D.E.S, Hall at 198 South Evans Road in Tipton.
Trust executive director Nick Reed-Krase said the goal is to listen to the needs of smaller farmers in Tulare County, and specifically the Tule subbasin.
The workshop will feature an overview of how the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act has impacted land use and access, followed by a group discussion with small growers, a segment of the farming community the trust doesn’t interact with as much.
Finally, Reed-Krase will introduce the buy-protect-sell concept to growers, which could entail the trust purchasing acreage, protecting it from development with a conservation easement so that it remains in production, and then selling parcels off to smaller farmers.
It’s a potential solution for small farmers under the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, he said.
“Could this model work here?” he asked. “We hope to bring some folks who are farming leased ground in marginal areas and move them toward more prime farm ground. We want to support the economic viability of small-scale farms in the area because they are just as valuable as larger ones.”
Registration is not required but appreciated for planning purposes.
Registration Links:
- English version: https://forms.gle/i9W9Bjo4DR1cF38d6
- Punjabi version: ਕਿਸਾਨਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਜ਼ਮੀਨ ਨਾਲ ਜੁੜੇ ਰੱਖਣਾ: SGMA ਦੇ ਤਹਿਤ ਛੋਟੇ ਪੱਧਰ ਦੇ ਕਿਸਾਨਾਂ ਲਈ ਪ੍ਰੈਕਟੀਕਲ ਹੱਲਾਂ ਦੀ ਪਛਾਣ
- Spanish version : https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd_n8TUon3Ri8CjC0UsA_A0ML_5BXfjEYYScPLmyta0FFOaqQ/viewform?usp=publish-editor
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