Vertical farms make way for rewilding efforts
Last week I wrote about the value of vertical and indoor farms, particularly in large urban areas like New York City. One enormous benefit for this kind of farming is that it allows for more land to be returned to the wild, known formally as rewilding, because trays of farmed produce can be stacked one on top of the other making efficient use of the space vertically.
Managing scarce water supplies
Traditional agriculture takes up a lot of land because it can only be planted in one horizontal plane. Then that land must be cleared and is often tilled each year, to say nothing of all the chemical pesticides that are often used and find their way into the soil, crops, and water supply. In drought conditions like we currently have in the western U.S., some farmers have to leave one-third of their fields unplanted because of the lack of water. Not only has this barren land been cleared of its native vegetation and the wildlife who called it home; it’s also not serving the purpose of growing food and the tilling of it released carbon back into the atmosphere as carbon dioxide which furthers global warming and climate change.
Sinking carbon, creating homes for wildlife, and restoring food webs
Vertical indoor farms allow produce to be grown year-round on a small horizontal footprint with guaranteed yields rather than being subject to the luck of the weather. The extra land previously used for farming can be returned to nature to regenerate with native plants and trees, re-establishing homes for wildlife, drawing carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere to store carbon in the ground, and re-establishing sustainable food webs.
Combatting soil erosion and floods
Another benefit of rewilding is that it stops soil erosion and combats flooding because the root systems of plants and trees help to stabilize the ground. While the western U.S. is being battered by drought, the eastern half of the U.S. has the opposite problem with flash floods on the rise due to the immense amount of rain. July 2021 is well on its way to becoming the wettest July on record for states like New York. With climate change, that trend in the east will continue and grow. The European floods that we saw last week in Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands were so severe that even climate scientists were alarmed. If climate change continues at this pace, we won’t be able to protect our cities and towns from becoming scenes like this. We have to return some of the land we’ve developed to the wild. Rewilding is our best hope at preservation.
Improved health
While rewilding efforts restore the natural habitat and wildlife populations, local communities of people benefit from increased access to nature. Spending time in nature has been shown to lower stress levels and associated hormone levels, lower blood pressure, improve our immune system, increase self-esteem, improve cognitive functioning, reduce anxiety, and improve our overall mental health. Nature isn’t a nice to have; it’s a have to have for the planet and for us.
Rewilding must be managed
This doesn’t mean that we carelessly toss up vertical farms and just let nature take its course. Because we destroyed the natural ecosystems when we cleared the land, we have to thoughtfully restore them when we rewild it. It’s important to connect wild areas to one another rather than isolating wildlife on them, and to consider how humans and wildlife could and / or should interact in the newly rewilded spaces. Community engagement is key to the success of rewilding efforts.
For those interested in rewilding land in their communities, International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) put together an excellent resource that discusses the rewards, risks, and ways to mitigate unwanted outcomes. Stay wild!