Working with Nature to Protect California's Agricultural Regions

The report advocates for the transition of California's agricultural landscapes from resource-intensive practices to nature-based solutions (NbS). It details specific strategies such as multibenefit managed aquifer recharge, floodplain restoration, and agrivoltaics to tackle groundwater depletion, flooding, and energy insecurity. Through case studies in Okieville, Dos Rios, Fairmead, and Allensworth, the document demonstrates how these interventions can simultaneously improve water security, restore biodiversity, and provide economic opportunities for disadvantaged communities. It further provides implementation guidance on community engagement, permitting, and funding sources to support the state's climate and water goals.

• Nature-based solutions (NbS) provide a transdisciplinary alternative to traditional infrastructure, which is often too expensive and siloed to address the combined challenges of unsustainable water use, extreme heat, flooding, air pollution, and economic instability in California's agricultural regions.
• Multibenefit managed aquifer recharge (MAR) can improve water security for disadvantaged communities by strategically positioning recharge basins up-gradient of affected areas. The Okieville project in Tulare County exemplifies this, providing 630 to 1,400 acre-feet of high-quality surface water annually to improve groundwater quantity and quality.
• Floodplain restoration reduces downstream flood risk and enhances biodiversity by reconnecting rivers to historical floodplains. The Dos Rios Ranch Preserve converted 1,600 acres of former dairy land into a restoration site that conserves approximately 7,000 acre-feet of freshwater annually and created habitat for nine priority species.
• Integrating renewable energy with agriculture (agrivoltaics) or habitat (ecovoltaics) maximizes land use and supports energy sovereignty. In Allensworth, a proposed 10 MW agrivoltaic system aims to provide low-cost electricity to residents while reducing crop water demand through decreased evapotranspiration.
• The creation of community buffer and revitalization zones—specifically within one mile of disadvantaged communities—can protect residents from harmful agronomic practices like pesticide drift and dust while providing cooling effects and recreational greenways.
• Successful implementation of NbS requires non-extractive community engagement throughout the planning and design phases to ensure projects address self-described community needs rather than providing only incidental benefits.
• Strategic cropland repurposing supports several of California's broader policy mandates, including the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, the goal of 100 percent clean energy, and the 30x30 initiative to conserve 30 percent of lands and coastal waters by 2030.

APA

Union of Concerned Scientists (2025). Working with Nature to Protect California's Agricultural Regions. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2025-09/working-with-nature-to-protect-california%27s-agricultural-regions_0.pdf

Chicago

Union of Concerned Scientists. Working with Nature to Protect California's Agricultural Regions. 2025. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2025-09/working-with-nature-to-protect-california%27s-agricultural-regions_0.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Union of Concerned Scientists |title=Working with Nature to Protect California's Agricultural Regions |date=September 2025 |url=https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2025-09/working-with-nature-to-protect-california%27s-agricultural-regions_0.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{unionofconcernedscientists2025working, author = {{Union of Concerned Scientists}}, title = {{Working with Nature to Protect California's Agricultural Regions}}, institution = {Union of Concerned Scientists}, year = {2025}, month = sep, url = {https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2025-09/working-with-nature-to-protect-california%27s-agricultural-regions_0.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }