Sometimes big things come in small packages. This week’s episode on Beer Sessions Radio™ may sound like just another tale about locavorism, but New York State is on the verge of rediscovering its rich agricultural heritage. And craft beer is a giant player in helping rebuild the agricultural economy, especially in the field of grains (pun intended). This week host Jimmy Carbone welcomes brewer Kelly Taylor, June Russell of GrowNYC, and Jennifer Grossman of the Natural Resources Defense Council, which is launching a “Clean Water, Great Beer” campaign for brewers.
Beer writer Lucy Saunders, who is familiar with the watershed protection movement in both the Midwest (as the volunteer coordinator of part of the Great Lakes Water Conservation Workshop) and New York State, wrote in to voice her perspective on the history of Brewers for Clean Water:
“The volunteer conference that I organize in support of the Great Lakes Compact already held a session in New York State in April 2010, in Rochester. Ron Bishop, one of the organizers behind the first fracking protests in Oneonta, presented a review of the frack chemicals found in wastewater and their environmental effects. Brewery Ommegang and the environmental action group Earthjustice both have been involved in the frack fight in NYS. The NRDC then drew a connection with craft brewers, such as New Belgium Brewing Co., through an article published on Huffington Post.
“The NRDC launched its Brewers for Clean Water campaign at the Great Lakes Water Conservation Conference in Chicago, October 2012, and also presented it at a panel at the Craft Brewers Conference in Washington, DC last month. So, the momentum is building for policy support of the Clean Water Act from the craft brewing community. New York State is part of the Great Lakes Compact, but I’m not sure if Gov. Cuomo plans to attend the May meeting of the Council of Great Lakes Governors in Mackinac Island, Michigan. The Great Lakes Compact requires all water-intensive businesses to practice conservation, and regulations to implement the Great Lakes Compact are due at the end of this year. However, I thought the craft brewing community should get involved early, so I have organized five events in four years, thanks to more than 100 volunteers and speakers and 200 participants interested in the water/energy conservation efforts that will ultimately protect the world’s largest supply of surface freshwater, the Great Lakes.”
Back in the studio, Kelly talks about how Kelso Brewing is among craft brewers working to stay local, sourcing grains from Valley Malt. He notes, “When you drink beers that are made with local grains and local hops and you interact with your local farmers, (the beer) is an amazing end product that I’m really happy to be a part of creating.”
And speaking of Ommegang, Kate Stamps calls in to talk about the Hop Chef competition, which involves celebrity chefs cooking with Ommegang beers. Plus you’ll hear from Michael Kinstlick of Coppersea Distilling about his upcoming line of spirits that uses local grain!