The hills of El Dorado County were the backdrop for a tour of agriculture, forestry and rural communities on October 24. Over 50 elected officials, staff and community members from across the six-county region were led by El Dorado County Supervisor Rusty Dupray and Placerville Councilman Pierre Rivas.
The first stop on the tour was Apple Hill, the best-known agritourism site in the region. Started by 16 farmers in the 1960s after pear orchards suddenly started to die, Apple Hill has grown to over 50 ranches including Christmas tree growers, wineries and of course many, many apples.
The next stop, the Institute of Forest Genetics, run by the U.S. Forest Service, has been looking at the urban-rural interface for many decades, working with resource managers and policymakers to identify solutions to real-world problems.
El Dorado County stands out from other parts of the region because it doesn't export commodities, but instead relies on bringing in consumers to buy products direct from farms, wineries and others.
David Girard Vineyards produces a few thousand cases of wine annually. Like most other wineries in the county, over 85 percent of wine sales are direct to consumers.
A lunch, Dale van Dam explained Folsom Lake College's El Dorado Center, one of 10 mini-campuses in the Los Rios Community College District that brings job training close to where people live. Nate Rangel, a whitewater outfitter, talked about the popularity of outdoor recreation and the challenges of regulations on his industry.
Gold Hill Olive Oil Company, like many other producers in the county, only uses a portion of its land. The average farm in the county sitsacres, but only farms 8 of those acres. Gold Hill also faces a common problem of having to haul its product out of the county for processing due to the high cost of building a facility.
Downtown Placerville was the last stop on the tour. Founded during thGold Rush, the community continues to rely on visitors and tourism. Highway 50 is critical to the couand city of Placerville, and several projects are underway to improve safety, goods movement, and bicycleand pedestrian connections along the corridor.