If the owners of the almond orchards were, say, thousands of small farmers instead of a billionaire, I think I could put a really positive slant on this story:
* The amount of protein one gets from almonds per unit of water is far higher than the amount of protein one gets from raising livestock
* Almonds are considered a relatively healthy food with relatively high quantities of antioxidants (including vitamin e)
* Almond trees sequester carbon but livestock create additional methane -- one of the worst greenhouse gases
* Trees clean the air of other pollutants
* At least some of the water used to water almond trees soaks back into the ground without becoming fouled by animal waste products
* California water policies are helping the little guy -- the small farmer and poor immigrants
* The amount of protein one gets from almonds per unit of water is far higher than the amount of protein one gets from raising livestock
* Almonds are considered a relatively healthy food with relatively high quantities of antioxidants (including vitamin e)
* Almond trees sequester carbon but livestock create additional methane -- one of the worst greenhouse gases
* Trees clean the air of other pollutants
* At least some of the water used to water almond trees soaks back into the ground without becoming fouled by animal waste products
* California water policies are helping the little guy -- the small farmer and poor immigrants