It costs $1 a day to feed a child a salad & 35 cents to feed a child pizza. What do you think schools feed our children? The CoCo San Sustainable Farm in Martinez, CA is a project of the Earth Island institute, a non-profit environmental incubator in Berkeley. It costs $1 a day to feed a child a salad. Schools can not afford that. The food bank can not get salad vegetables because they are highly perishable and unavailable locally. We will be providing some free and some reduced-price produce to schools and the food bank by growing produce at a very low cost. We will grow produce on 33 acres of unused Central Contra Costa Sanitary District buffer land, using recycled agricultural-grade water, which is otherwise discharged into the Bay. This recycled water is high in organic nitrogen, providing free fertilizer. The Food Bank is a mile from the farm and will pick up the produce and use existing systems to distribute it to schools and clients. Hence, we are deploying under-utilized resources to nearly eliminate 4 of the major costs of food production: LAND, WATER, FERTILIZER, and TRANSPORTATION. Our business model is to generate revenue by selling 75% of the crops; renting community garden plots with classes; selling advertizing at the farm and on our website; and charging a fee for special services and events. Because we are a non-profit, we will also generate income from donations and grants. We will be sharing net revenues with Central San, financially benefiting rate-payers. One of the goals of the farm is to educate. Every aspect of science touches a farm such as physics, soil science, hydrology, meteorology, and nutrition. We are working with State Superintendent of Public Instruction, the Teacher of the Year, the Community College Board, and an expert who created internships for NASA to integrate the farm into school curricula. The farm will be an incubator for green jobs. We will partner with other sustainable businesses to showcase their products and teach aspects of jobs related to these industries. The environment will also benefit. Plants sequester carbon and clean the air. We reduce the major types of carbon pollution associated with food production: FOSSIL FUEL- BASED FERTILIZER and TRANSPORT. We will also rebuild barren soil and increase ground water, benefiting two adjacent creeks. Sanitary districts all over the world have unused buffer land and throw away recycled water. Sanitary districts in Contra Costa and Alameda Counties discharge about 200 million gallons of water into the Bay on a dry day and 1 billion gallons of water on a rainy day. Our business model is scalable and once proven, other sanitary districts can emulate to not waste this precious resource. The farm will produce a Win-Win-Win for public health, education, the environment, the economy, and rate-payers. An apple a day will not keep the doctor away. But a salad a day might!

1. CoCo San Sustainable Farm
By Carolyn Phinney, Ph.D.
With Bethallyn Black, M.A.

2. Kiewit Parcel Buffer

3. Kiewit Parcel Drawing

4. Clean-Fill Project

5. Area Where Clean-Fill Project Completed

6. Organic Sustainable Farm

7. Project Goals

Create an Organic Sustainable Urban Farm

Educate Public about Recycled Water and Toxic Waste
Use and Disposal

Change Behavior

Provide Fresh Produce to Schools and Food Bank

Reduce Environmental Footprint of Fresh Produce

Provide a Living Laboratory for Science Learning and Job
Training

Increase Food Security

Decrease Nutritional Poverty

Create a Replicable Model

8. CCCSD's Goals

Create a Safer and Healthier Environment

Educate Public About:
− Waste Water Cycle
− Integrated-Pest-Management
− Disposal of Toxic Chemicals
− Reclaimed Water

Change the Behavior of the Public

Build Relationships with the Community

9. Benefits to CCCSD

Garners Public Attention and Support (Great PR)

Teaches Public About Hazardous Waste

Motivates People to Change Their Behavior

Living Laboratory for Learning Applied Science

Trains for Jobs

Sequesters Carbon; Reduces Food Footprint

Open Land Protected from Erosion and Beautified

Habitat Restoration; Foster Endangered Species

Replicable for Other Sanitary Districts to Follow

10. Learning About Recycled Water

11. Learning About Hazardous Waste

12. Learning How Pesticides Disrupt
Natural Systems

13. Habitat Enhancement

14. Learning Sustainable Agriculture

15. Community Garden Plots

16. Building Community and
Influencing Behavior

17. Potential Benefits to CCCSD

Free Produce for CCCSD's use

Health Benefits to employees from Eating
more organic, local produce

Health Benefits from Exercise for
employees who have a plot or volunteer

Staff and Board Team-Building

Future rental Income when farm is
profitable

18. Fresh Produce for Employees

19. Team-Building

20. Contributes To Solving Other Problems

Saving Endangered Populations & Heirloom
Plants

National Drought

Food Costs Skyrocketing

Hunger on Rise

CoCo Food Bank Feeds 132,000/month

Nutritional Poverty on Rise

School Funding Cuts

Fresh Produce More Expensive Than Pizza for
School Lunches

21. Collaboration with CoCo Beekeepers

22. National Drought

23. Crop Expenses Skyrocketing

24. Costs of Production of Food

25. Food Insecurity
Household food insecurity rates 2008-2010

California: 15.9%

CoCo Food Bank Serves: 28% Children

“From birth, the intake of vital nutrients is
essential to the growth and development of
a healthy individual....has implications on a
child’s future physical and mental health,
academic achievement, and economic
productivity.” www.FeedingAmerica.org

26. Food Bank Feeds 132,000 Per Month

27. Opportunity Costs to CCCSD ??

Could possibly rent Keiwitt Property

Other 48 acre ranch rents for $100/month

Can't rent while Clean Fill Project is underway

Buchanan Airport Height and Density Restrictions

Protected Streams on 2 Sides

Migrating Birds Protected Site

Protected Wetlands

Zoned for Heavy Industrial

28. Other Possible Costs to CCCSD

EIR update

Zoning Variance Application

Recycled Water Used

Signage

Staff Time

Board Members' Time

Liability

29. Next Steps

Fund-raise

County Zoning Variance

Install Irrigation Pipe

Amend Soil (Oct-March)

EIR

Fencing Enhanced

Plant Alfalfa (October)

Harvest Alfalfa(Spring)

Plant Vegetable Crops (Spring)

Harvest Vegetable Crops (June-November)

30. Install Main Irrigation Pipes

31. Amend Soil with Compost

32. Rip Compacted Soil Adding Compost

33. Alfalfa Field

34. Alfalfa Hay Crop Every 6 Months

35. Enhance Fencing

36. Draft of Layout of Farm

37. June 2013: Community Health

38. Fall 2013: Community Invested