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2 CapitalPress.com Friday, December 13, 2019 People & Places In search of sustainability By GEORGE PLAVEN Capital Press CORVALLIS, Ore. — For Chad Higgins, the “aha” moment came purely by chance. Higgins, an associate pro- fessor of biological and eco- logical engineering at Ore- gon State University, was walking casually past a 6-acre sheep pasture near campus in 2015 when he observed something peculiar. Two years earlier, the uni- versity had installed a solar array on the land, generat- ing 1,435 kilowatts of renew- able electricity. It was never meant for research, but Hig- gins’ scientific mind couldn’t help but notice how much greener and more lush the grass was growing in the shade beneath the panels. “You could literally see ecological differences as a result of the installation,” Higgins said. The discovery led Higgins and his team at the Nexus of Energy, Water and Agricul- ture Laboratory, or NEWAg, to begin studying how solar installations can make con- ventional farms more prof- itable and sustainable, from powering electric tractors to conserving water in low-rain- fall areas. Now Higgins has his sights set on establishing what he calls “the Disney- land of sustainable agricul- ture,” a research farm where growers, developers and aca- demics can put these bold concepts to the test. Called the Staterra Center, the name is derived from the Latin words “statera,” mean- ing balance, and “terra,” meaning Earth. “We have an opportunity to do good,” Higgins said. “We have an opportunity to provide stable and additional revenue streams to American family farms. We have an opportunity to make sure we don’t run out of food in the future.” Practical research By his own admission, Higgins is not the most likely person to be designing farms of the future. Higgins grew up in rural upstate New York before heading to Cornell Univer- sity, where he graduated in 2000 with a bachelor’s degree in agricultural and biological engineering. He later earned his master’s degree and doc- torate in mechanical and environmental engineering from Johns Hopkins Univer- sity in Baltimore. At that point, Higgins was studying turbulence and Established 1928 Capital Press Managers Western Innovator CHAD HIGGINS Age: 41 Family: Wife, Patti George Plaven/Capital Press Chad Higgins, associate professor of ecological and biological engineering at Ore- gon State University and director of the Nexus of Energy, Water and Agriculture Lab- oratory, is aiming to build a research farm called the Staterra Center to experiment with sustainable farming technology. fluid mechanics — interest- ing subjects, he said, though highly technical and their significance was difficult to explain. “I wanted to do something more practical,” Higgins said. “I wanted the research I did to be close enough to an implementable reality that I could explain it to my grandma....” In 2007, Higgins left the U.S. for Europe to work at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne in Switzerland. There he taught classes and helped to develop computer codes that could track Alpine hydrology and better predict avalanches. After four years overseas, Higgins said he began feel- ing homesick. He saw OSU was hiring an irrigation spe- cialist, and decided to apply despite his limited training. “By some miracle, I was able to make the case that what I had learned could be applied to irrigation,” he said. One of Higgins’ first vis- its in Oregon was to the recently built Shepherds Flat Wind Farm in rural Gilliam and Morrow counties along the Columbia River. Star- ing across a maze of wind turbines covering 30 square miles, Higgins made his first connection between renew- able energy and its effects on farmland. “I asked the simple ques- tion: Do the wind turbines affect the irrigation demand of most fields?” Higgins said. “That’s the day I founded the NEWAg Laboratory.” Agrivoltaic systems As director of the NEWAg Lab, Higgins and five post- graduate students examine how food, water and energy intersect — whether through technology, public policy or By GEOFF PARKS For the Capital Press PERRYDALE, Ore. — The Per- rydale High School FFA chapter’s 2019 Food For All program collected over 350,000 pounds of food for dis- tribution to over 8,000 needy families throughout the Willamette Valley and the central coast. The effort, now in its 21st year, is sponsored by the Lower Willamette FFA District, In addition to Perrydale, it includes Willamina, Dayton, Sheri- dan, Yamhill-Carlton, Central and Dal- las. It is coordinated by Food For All program founder and retired Perrydale ag adviser Kirk Hutchinson and aided by Christina Griffin, Perrydale High’s FFA adviser. Each year, Perrydale and the other general farm practices. The researchers pub- lished their first paper on wind energy in 2015, which showed that turbines at Shep- herds Flat did increase water evaporation by about 10%. However, Higgins said the paper was “woefully and totally” ignored. After Higgins took his ser- endipitous walk past the 35th Street Solar Array, he knew right away the lab needed to pivot from studying wind to solar. Using a combination of meteorological equipment and soil moisture sensors, the lab spent months analyz- ing conditions in the pasture. What they found was grass beneath the solar panels used water 300% more efficiently, growing 90% more forage for livestock grazing. “It was a massive improvement in water effi- ciency and productivity,” Higgins said. The idea of co-developing land for farming and solar panels — known as agrivol- taics — is nothing new. Ger- man physicists were first to propose the concept in 1981. “You essentially treat light as a farm resource that you manage, and don’t just take as it’s given,” Higgins said. “You put light, or sun, in the same class as you put water and fertilizer, for exam- ple, something you actively manipulate for agronomic benefit.” Essentially, there is a maximum amount of light that plants can convert into sugars, Higgins explained. Just like people sweat in the hot sun, plants also use more water to cool themselves under stress. Rather than apply more irrigation, Higgins said solar panels can create the shade that plants need to grow more efficiently, while also pro- ducing valuable electricity that can be used on the farm. Higgins has a few ideas where the electricity can be used for even greater environmental benefits. It could go toward electrify- ing farm machinery, such as tractors, lowering diesel fuel emissions. Or it could replace burning natural gas in the process required to make nitrogen fertilizer. Either way, Higgins said agrivoltaic systems could be key to help- ing farms go from a net carbon producer to net carbon-negative. “The efficiency gains we get from technology, coupled with all the other benefits of light manage- ment, are all the ingredi- ents we need for a sustain- able farm,” Higgins said. Staterra Center The most recent study published by NEWAg shows that solar power has the highest productivity when placed on farmland. Higgins said the results prove that, if just 1% of agricultural land was con- verted to agrivoltaics, it would be enough to offset global energy demand. “Energy security, food security and water secu- rity are all pushed in the proper direction under that scenario,” he said. The question then becomes how farmers and ranchers can config- ure the systems and inter- pret the data to make man- agement decisions without interrupting normal oper- ations. That is what Hig- gins hopes to answer with the Staterra Center. “I don’t expect anyone to Occupation: Associate professor, Oregon State University Department of Biological and Ecological Engineering; director, Nexus of Energy, Water and Agriculture Labora- tory (NEWAg) Education: Bachelor’s degree in agricultural and biological engineer- ing, Cornell University, 2000; master’s degree in mechanical engineering, Johns Hopkins University, 2005; doctorate in envi- ronmental engineering, Johns Hopkins University, 2007 just take me at my word,” Higgins said. “The proof is in the pudding, so to speak.” Higgins envisions the Sta- terra Center as a 5-acre parcel at OSU’s North Willamette Research and Extension Cen- ter south of Portland, with three to five solar arrays in various configurations and growing as many crops as possible. But the Staterra Center is far from a done deal. Hig- gins said he will likely need a couple million dollars to purchase the equipment and begin the trials. Fundrais- ing is underway, and Higgins said a few companies may donate panels and other gear for the center. “It’s all potential at this moment,” he said. “It’s a glimmer in our eyes, and we have loose commitments. But it’s not a guaranteed thing.” Higgins said Oregon has a chance to become a leader in agricultural innovation with the Staterra Center. Given some worrisome trends with climate change, a grow- ing population and declin- ing farmland, he said farm- ers must figure out how to feed the world with limited resources. “The agriculturists are getting squeezed on every side,” he said. “Something’s gotta give. We have to think outside the box of how to do this.” Lower Willamette FFA District schools collect, package and deliver fruits and vegetables to help provide food to fam- ilies in need throughout the Willamette Valley and central coast. Hands-on activities for Food For All participants at Perrydale High School begin with the opening of the school year. The chapter’s student ambassadors reach out through letters, emails and in-person presentations to local farmers, packers and related busi- nesses, soliciting donations of food. The food is collected by the stu- dents, teachers and adult volunteers over two days in early December. It is packaged into donated totes full of family-sized food bundles of potatoes, pears, onions, apples, oranges, pars- nips, beets, turnips, squash and other fresh produce. The packages are dis- tributed through Dec. 23, said Aleyah Mauk, 16, the chapter’s vice president. “Kindergartners through seniors here at the school help in this project,” Mauk said, from packaging the indi- vidual family bags to moving pallets and loading trucks. Any leftover food is donated to local food banks, she said. Griffin said because of the limited space at Perrydale, she didn’t think they were going to be able to take in much more product than the 350,000 pounds collected. Nothing is guaranteed in terms of food promised and food received for distribution. Hutchinson just smiled and said things usually work out. When a large donation of vegetables was scrubbed early in December, another commodity donation was boosted by the provider. Food For All is becoming a well- oiled machine, he said. “We’re getting more organized with more schools, being able to do more things,” Hutchinson said. “Northwest Farm Credit Services gave us a grant and we got our own labeled bags for the first time.” The 1,000-pound-capacity card- board totes were donated by a packing house in Clackamas, and a forklift was made available for moving them from the school to a delivery truck. “We always like volunteers,” he said. “NW Farm Credit sent 20 staff from their Salem office to help us pack food for a day, and we have 20 dif- ferent volunteers that do our trucking and our transportation for the 15 pick- ups and 40 deliveries of the packaged food.” CALENDAR MONDAY, JAN. 6 Idaho Range Livestock Sym- posium: 8 a.m., American Legion Hall, Marsing, Idaho. Adapting to a changing rangeland environment. Registration is required. Contact: Scott Jensen, 208-894-4104, scottj@ uidaho.edu Website: https://bit. ly/2DMjylR TUESDAY JAN. 7 Idaho-E. Oregon Alfalfa and Clover Seed Growers Meeting: 8 a.m., Caldwell Elks Lodge, 1015 N. Kimball Ave., Caldwell, Idaho. Alfalfa and clover seed growers from East- ern Oregon, southwest Idaho and the Magic Valley of Idaho will have Entire contents copyright © 2019 EO Media Group dba Capital Press Hometown: Scio, Ore. FFA students spearhead effort to collect 175 tons of food for needy Submit upcoming ag-related events on www.capitalpress.com or by email to newsroom@capital- press.com. Joe Beach ..................... Editor & Publisher Kevin Blodgett ........... Advertising Director Carl Sampson .................. Managing Editor Jessica Boone ............ Production Manager Samantha McLaren ....Circulation Manager https://bit.ly/2DMjylR their annual meeting. Contact: Ben- jamin Kelly, 208-888-0988, benja- min@amgidaho.com Idaho Range Livestock Sym- posium: CSI Herrett Center, 315 Falls Ave., Twin Falls, Idaho. Adapt- ing to a changing environment. Registration required. Contact: Ben- ton Glaze, 208-736-3638, bglaze@ uidaho.edu Website: https://bit. ly/2DMjylR Idaho Range Livestock Sym- posium: 8 a.m., BYU-Idaho Ag. Sci- ence Center, 525 S Center St., Rex- burg, Idaho. Adapting to a changing environment. Registration required. Contact: Benton Glaze, 208-736- 3638, bglaze@uidaho.edu Website: https://bit.ly/2DMjylR WEDNESDAY JAN. 8 THURSDAY-FRIDAY JAN. 9-10 Idaho Range Livestock Sym- posium: 8 a.m., Bannock County Veterans Memorial Building, 300 N Johnson Ave., Pocatello, Idaho. Adapting to a changing environ- ment. Registration required. Con- tact: Benton Glaze, 208-736-3638, bglaze@uidaho.edu Website: THURSDAY JAN. 9 Oregon Mint Growers Annual Meeting: 8 a.m. Salishan Resort, 7760 North Highway 101, Gleneden Beach, Ore. Make your plans to attend the 71st annual meeting, where you’ll hear the latest on the mint industry. Contact: http://ore- gonmint.org, 503-364-2944 TUESDAY, JAN. 14 Introduction to Food Safety & HACCP Workshop: 8 a.m. U of I Food Technology Center, 1902 E Chicago St., Caldwell, Idaho. This is a one-day overview course designed for line workers, QC personnel, san- itation professionals, supervisors, and other employees of food pro- cessing operations. Participants will spend part of the day learning about food safety prerequisite pro- grams, which are used to ensure food products are free from non- hazardous objectionable contam- inants. Cost: $355 Website: https:// bit.ly/2DJSOSP WEDNESDAY, JAN. 15 Farm and Ranch Succes- sion Planning Workshop Series: 1-4 p.m. Multnomah Grange No. 71, 30639 SE Bluff Road. Gresham, Ore. Register now for this free series of workshops on farm and ranch succession. Workshops are held every other Wednesday from Jan. 15 to Feb. 26 In addition to these courses, no-cost, confidential, one- on-one business counseling is pro- vided free by an experienced Farm and Ranch Small Business Devel- opment Center adviser. Let us help you identify issues and evaluate options in passing your farm and business on to the next generation. A complimentary light lunch is pro- vided at 12:30 p.m. There is room for 50 people. Presented by: Clack- amas Small Business Development Center and the East Multnomah & Clackamas Soil & Water Conserva- tion Districts. Questions? Call Diana Tourney at 503-594-0732. An independent newspaper published every Friday. Capital Press (ISSN 0740-3704) is published weekly by EO Media Group, 2870 Broadway NE, Salem OR 97303. Periodicals postage paid at Portland, OR, and at additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: send address changes to Capital Press, P.O. Box 2048 Salem, OR 97308-2048. 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