A worker adjusts a water irrigation system in a field near San Ysidro, California. REUTERS/Mike Blake

Veggies Grown with Toilet Water Could Be Headed to Your Table
In the past several years, California’s drought has cut back water supplies for many growers, forcing them to fallow fields. But starting as early as December, the city of Modesto will sell its highly treated wastewater to struggling nearby farmers. When it’s up and running, the experiment should be California’s largest wastewater-to-agriculture reuse project, and will generate the first recycled water to flow through a federal canal.

Going Digital to Rescue Food
Restaurants and supermarkets have excess food. Food pantries and soup kitchens demand food. How do we get the two to meet? One answer is: Create an app. Digital platforms now allow organizations like Food Rescue US, Rescuing Leftover Cuisine, and Feeding America to match food donors and consumers. And apps can assign volunteers to recovery tasks, providing an efficient delivery service to connect the two.

Robots, High-Tech Tools Join Battle against Invasive Species
New technology is being combined with the old methods—weed pulling, trapping, and pesticides to combat invasive plants and animals that are taking over and killing native species. Finding new weapons is crucial because invasive species are costly—$314 billion per year in damages in just the US, UK, Australia, South Africa, India, and Brazil. It’s also one of the leading causes of extinction on islands.

Techies and Tractors: Silicon Valley’s Next Big Thing Is Saving Water
Silicon Valley, the nation’s most powerful tech hub, sits in the middle of California’s most productive farmland. Despite their proximity, the agriculture and technology sectors haven’t had much interaction. But bridging that gap could help solve one of agriculture’s most pernicious problems: water scarcity. Technologists are betting their solutions will ensure a steady stream of revenue for both industries in an increasingly dry world.