Farm groups oppose Cal Poly plan to pave over 50 acres

San Luis Obispo County Farm Bureau, the San Luis Obispo County Cattlemen’s Association and San Luis Obispo County CattleWomen, opposes Cal Poly’s proposed land development that would pave over and develop 50 acres of prime ag land around the SLO campus.Ag alumni are vocal in opposing developing of college farmland with housing, a hotel, an event center, retail stores and other amenities. Cal Poly alumni Danilu Jelderks,VP with the SLO Farm Bureau, fears the loss of prime farmland.She recently penned an article noting that although under CEQA “ Mitigation may require a developer to protect other prime farmland under a conservation easement to compensate for land lost to development. But this is not a true offset. Prime farmland cannot be recreated. Protecting farmland elsewhere does not replace the soil lost to development. Unlike planting five oak trees for every tree removed, there is no way to grow new prime soil. A conservation easement may preserve farmland, but it cannot restore what has been lost. Eventually, we run out of prime farmland to protect. In that sense, CEQA’s mitigation requirements do not eliminate the loss of this irreplaceable resource. Please join members of our county Farm Bureau, Cattlemen’s Association, CattleWomen, alumni, industry donors and other groups to voice your opposition to the west campus proposal. Help us preserve Cal Poly’s agricultural heritage and roots. Sign the online petition at: www.change.org/p/save-cal-poly-slo-farmland?source_location=homepage_local_section.”