We’ve all heard about extinctions and endangered species. These include not only pandas and Siberian tigers, but also many food species. An organization called RAFT (Restoring America’s Food Traditions) has catalogued over 1,100 American plant and animal species that are on the verge of extinction.

The opposite problem also exists – too many of a species, in the wrong place. “Wrong place” (as defined by humans) means a plant or animal has entered a region where it normally doesn’t live, and we call these “invasive.” Of course, natural environments have always changed over time, and what was invasive a thousand years ago is now native to a place. Our terms take the short-term view.

In any case, some of these newbies to a region can be really threatening (by eating or out-competing native life) or just seriously inconvenient, such as kudzu. The latest idea for solving two problems at once is:  Eat the invaders! Elisabeth Rosenthal, one of my favorite New York Times writers, describes some of these initiatives. Lionfish and Asian carp are on the menu, and if you eat them instead of endangered or overfished species such as Chilean sea bass and grouper, you may be helping nature.

Environmentalists can see the plus side, including some of the folks at the Nature Conservancy (which works globally to preserve ecosystems and species) and Food and Water Watch (which reports on problems in industrial food and advocates for solutions)

There are downsides, though. What if fishers use unsustainable methods to catch these fish? What if they grew in waters that are contaminated? Such problems already exist with many species we already eat.

Marin Organic, a network of growers, chefs, and entrepreneurs, hosts a lot of neat events and here’s one you won’t want to miss. This Saturday, July 9, the Clark Summit Farm is welcoming visitors from 10 am to noon. There is a fee ($25, or $20 for Friends of Marin Organic, $5 for kids over 2 years). This is an organic farm that has been in the family for almost a hundred years. Contact
kerry@marinorganic.org for reservations or information

And on Sunday, July 10, in San Francisco you may attend a great tasting event sponsored by Center for Urban Education about Sustainable Agriculture (CUESA). This is a fundraiser whose proceeds will support CUESA’s projects such as cooking demonstrations, kitchen skill-building classes, the new Schoolyard to Market program, and scholarships that help sustainable farmers build their markets.

At the event, you’ll be able to sample offerings from San Francisco’s top chefs, such as Eric Tucker of Millennium, Annie Sommerville of Greens, Nate Keller of Gastronaut, and dozens more.  Admission is $95 ($50 of this is tax deductible) and the event runs from 6 to 9 pm. at the Ferry Building.

Roots of Change, a San Francisco think tank that funds projects for a sustainable food system, points out some ways to celebrate independence in a sustainable manner.

First, be a supporter of local farmers – and of the restaurants and markets where you can find their products. Eat Well Guide and Buy Fresh Buy Local are websites that will help you locate these enterprises.Second, add veggie kebabs to your event. So many people enjoy outdoor grilling, but the good news it doesn’t have to involve meat. This July 4 falls on a Monday, so having a mushroom-onion-greenpepper-eggplant kebab also honors Meatless Monday. Third, reduce waste. Did you know you can buy biodegradable plates, napkins, and even cutlery? They can all go in your compost bin after the festivities, or your city compost bin if your city collects compostables. Same for table scraps.

I’m sure there are other ways to honor earth on Independence Day, but these three are a start. Actually, you could omit the barbecue altogether. According to the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Each July 4, 60 million people light their barbecue grills, burning the equivalent of 2,300 acres of forest, emitting nearly 225,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide.

If you’re going to cook something outside, why not use a solar oven instead? These gizmos are portable boxes that concentrate sunlight to heat the cooking space to about 300 degrees. Foggy areas like San Francisco’s Great Highway area or Pacifica or western Marin may not be the likeliest places to try solar cooking, but most places in the Bay Area get enough sun to make one of these solar ovens pay for itself over time.