Why America’s Groundwater Is Disappearing | WSJ

Unchecked groundwater use is draining aquifers across the U.S., threatening drinking water supplies and the nation’s status as a food superpower. For example, the Ogallala Aquifer beneath the Great Plains supports about 30% of all U.S. crop and animal production, but in 2022, parts of the water table reached their lowest levels since NASA started measuring two decades ago.
WSJ explains why this crisis is posing an “existential threat” to many communities and looks at how the critical natural resources could be saved.
Chapters:
0:00 Groundwater disappearing
0:33 Importance of groundwater in Kansas
2:48 How communities are adapting
4:11 Systemic issues leading to depletion
5:03 Depletion across the country
5:39 What’s next?
News Explainers
Some days the high-speed news cycle can bring more questions than answers. WSJ’s news explainers break down the day's biggest stories into bite-size pieces to help you make sense of the news.
#Groundwater #Food #WSJ

[@wsj]

The science behind why the world is getting wetter: on.wsj.com/3ygp7so

[@who2u333]

The world in some areas is getting wetter. Apparently one of those area is not Western Kansas.

[@leviahimsa]

Save 1,100 gallons of water EVERY DAY when you choose vegan. 💦

[@PodcastOnTheSpectrum]

So why is evey wsj video comment section filled with bots and the clueless?

[@SagittarianArrows]

3 Angels' Message return to God of peace. STOP YOUR WARRING MENTALITY. Wrath of the Lord will be unleashed.

[@drx1xym154]

@@leviahimsa - um, no and they often have to clear cut forest and jungle to grow your vegetables. The issues are many, yet sustainable agriculture is the way forward. Industrial agriculture - for anything - cows, corn or lettuce, kale, etc... often had many hidden costs. Cows and other herd animals can live off more scrub and pigs can live off of scraps (also why the meat has to be fully cooked!). Also many animals are killed to support the vegan diet. Jungle is also destroyed ... please do some actual research. Confirmation bias helps no one - not even you.

[@Flipflop437]

I’m confident that our great nation will recognize the urgency of the groundwater situation, and proceed to do nothing.

[@Aendavenau]

To do anything is socialism after all :)

[@FourDollaRacing]

Yes our thoughts and prayers go out to the farmers and good luck...

[@biocular]

@@FourDollaRacing Oh, we won't be far behind them. No need for prayers; tell him face to face.

[@GrimReaperNegi]

Here, here! But they will blame the consumer for it somehow...

[@DgurlSunshine]

@@GrimReaperNegi STOP SHOPPING

[@robertfrost1683]

Stop using corn as fuel.

[@stevenirby5576]

💯 Makes no sense that we do that.

[@yuanruichen2564]

Stops eating so much of it

[@ccrose1]

Use sunflowers

[@jayjya]

@@stevenirby5576it did, at the time

[@kchididdy]

@@yuanruichen2564 It's not even nutritious. Switch to oats to keep them colons clean.

[@Me97202]

Meanwhile, huge corporations, like Coke, use as much groundwater as they want for free.

[@acm116]

True, but I suspect in some states they are charged for the water and that coke locates it's plants in areas with ample water. Perhaps more ironic is that we have that sweetened water shipped to our local grocer and pay for it...and if it's Dasani , it's just plain.

[@hurrdurrmurrgurr]

@@acm116 Coke locates its plants wherever is most profitable, they don't care about the water supply. Case in point are the bottling plants in Mexico draining the already stressed aquifer beneath Mexico City.

[@DgurlSunshine]

AS DO THE CRYPTO MINING DATA CENTERS!

[@DgurlSunshine]

@@acm116 CROOKS

[@Abit_Aloof]

Actually the water used in making drinks pales in comparison to the water used in agriculture

[@Someone-cd7yi]

“Only when the last tree has died and the last river been poisoned and the last fish been caught will we realize we cannot eat money.”

[@RyanBanman]

Grow up. Its not just about the big boogey man of 'corporate greed'. You know these big corporations are rich becuade of you, and me, and everyone in this comment section? They make the food we eat, clothes we wear, and tools and toys to whom we dish out and go into debt for.

[@andyjohnson3790]

​@@RyanBanmanso true, and they also exploit every single penny that they can get out of the environment and consumers while paying lobbyists to relax the rules and lawyers to lower penalties when they break the rules. Almost every company on Wall Street is considered too big to fail today and government protected

[@whazzat8015]

@@RyanBanman Not to mention big screen Chinese TV's and big pickups and SUV's?

[@chazlabreck]

​@@RyanBanmanyou have been trained to blame the victims

[@janettomlin950]

So stupid! It reminds me of the Dr. Seuss book about the loss of trees

[@sebastienholmes548]

Maybe, stop corn subsidies.

[@levismith7444]

Growing corn to make ethanol the biggest waste of water I can think of

[@CaseNumber00]

I was thinking of finding the foreign companies that exist and work in the US and send the majority of their crops back to that country. I worked out in the desert of CA for a few months and asked around about questions of the area. A few farms around the area were own by very wealthy Middle Eastern, grew alfalfa, a very thirsty crop, and shipped it back exclusively to the middle east just for horses. At the time, they paid rock bottom rates for access to the water, heard its different now but they still are paying a bargain. It wouldnt be surprising China has a few farms like this.

[@LuciusSullaCornelius]

@@levismith7444 In 2024 maybe biodiesel consumes more corn than ethanol, I don't know in the States but probably worldwide.

[@josepheridu3322]

Stop the 10 types of fake vegetable milk sold in markets.

[@leviahimsa]

Animal agriculture is the biggest consumer of corn/maize and soy.

[@ronkirk5099]

When groundwater aquifers are pumped down the water bearing strata can compress so that it loses its ability to hold water even if water use is reduced below the recharge rate. Once the aquifer is wrecked, it's wrecked for good. Most of this water is actually fossil water anyway that took thousands of years to accumulate and recharge rates are extremely slow. It doesn't make much sense to grow water intensive crops like cotton and alfalfa in the desert anyway and we sure shouldn't be exporting alfalfa to Saudia Arabia.

[@briskettacos]

Ron, please take care of yourself. Eat well, sleep enough, and go to your doctor. We're going to need people like you to rebuild civilization when everything finally collapses.

[@whazzat8015]

If we stop selling alfalfa to the Saudis, how will we be able to afford big screen Chinese TV's and big pickups and SUV's?

[@ekkehard8]

​@@whazzat8015 Chinese goods are really cheap. You should complain about the chinese companies we have bailing out with taxpayer money for some reason.

[@fladave99]

THIS IS TOTAL BS. FARMING WATER filters BACK TO THE AQUIFER YEA, SHUT THE FARMS. BUILD CONDOS The water is being SOLD to CHINA and NESTLES and water bottlers which REMOVES THE WATER from the area. Whatta load of H S Our aquifers are 7 time LARGER than all the oceans on earth

[@Themrine2013]

that isnt true at all

[@maciejkrycki8976]

The funniest part is how much food the US wastes

[@kpz4936]

And how much it exports to the world.

[@justayoutuber1906]

funny?

[@acm116]

That's an indicator of our affluence. We do waste a lot of food, most before it ever gets to the consumer.

[@DgurlSunshine]

@@acm116 CORPORATE WASTE IS SELF EVIDENT. THEY WILL TRASH GOOD FOOD AND LET PEOPLE STARVE

[@alexg9727]

the funniest thing is liberals think corn fuel will save the environment

[@jm9371]

When ground water is gone, its GONE! It takes lifetimes to replenish, especially if the aquifer subsides.

[@jneuf861]

Here in Northern Mexico they're drilling over 1000ft

[@acm116]

That's not entirely true. With some aquifers it takes years, with others hours. It all depends on the composition of the soil and bedrock above the aquifer.

[@social3ngin33rin]

100k-millions of years for the largest ones...and that's when humans aren't using it

[@hurrdurrmurrgurr]

@@acm116 Where are you getting hours from, the aquifer can't fill faster than the amount of rain hitting the ground and the ground has saturation limits where it needs time to seep through while the water above it runs off.

[@DgurlSunshine]

CONCENTRATED POISONS LINE THE AQUIFER NOW LEACHING

[@briceking669]

There are also foreign nations buying farm land, growing water intensive crops and shipping them overseas.

[@RedCurlyQ1]

There is not nearly enough concern or awareness about this, it’s terrifying.

[@s._3560]

Blaming other countries again. Why don't farmers stop growing and over-using so much ground water to produce excess food to sell for money? Why not stop turning forests into farmland ? Why not stop placing so many dams on your Colorado and Columbia rivers and let them flood the plains?

[@mertonallowicious]

I hit like on your comment and watched the number of thumbs up stay the same… amazed yours is still up

[@grsafran]

Yes it is called capitalism. Are you some kind of Communist who thinks governments should interfere, if not just shut up already. This is how capitalism works.

[@Heterogeneity]

Right? Saudi is growing alfalfa in the Arizona desert with free groundwater.

[@jess_o]

We MUST stop subsidizing unsustainable products! I am looking at you, Corn, Ethanol

[@paulanderson3349]

The farm bill is being debated right now. Call your federal representatives and urge them to cut baseline funding for farm subsidies and crop insurance subsidies. (the relevant agencies are Farm Service Agency, Risk Management Agency, and Natural Resource and Conservation service) There are some groups trying to increase funding for crop insurance subsidies. We need to cut them, not increase them.

[@340wbymag]

People don't understand the situation at all. They see farmers using too much water, and they look no farther. History tells us that prior to the "invasion" by Europeans, America was home to hundreds of millions of beavers. They inhabited rivers, creeks, and streams across the country, even in areas that are deserts today. Roughly ten percent of north America was covered by beaver-created wetlands. Beavers were hunted almost to extinction, and when they were gone, the wetlands disappeared. So did billions of birds, fish, and other wildlife that depended upon the wetlands. It was only then that agriculture stripped the land and began depleting the already disappearing groundwater. Now, with modern agriculture sucking all the water out of the ground, and no beavers to help to replenish that groundwater, the earth is drying up and will in time turn to desert. Why is it so hard for people to understand that America needs to harvest water? We need to reestablish wetlands. Property owners should be paid for harvesting water and for creating wetlands on their land. It isn't rocket science. It is just plain old common sense, but people don't see it. It is possible to restore groundwater, and it is possible to restore badly degraded lands. The only other option is to continue degrading the land and using all the water until it is gone. Sadly, America will likely take the easy route to destruction. We rarely do the right thing anymore because that requires effort and dedication.

[@JackjackTheThird]

Same with the buffalo and their grazing patterns.

[@burnshirtvalleyfarm6337]

Its hard to quantify the solution even when the solution is so eloquently stated. We are a country of addicts, Drugs, experiences, and goods. We will defend our right to our "lifestyle" until we die and the saddest thing is we dont even want the system we have. We are not happy with this life. But as with the Oxy epidemic it is forced onto us for the 1% to profit.

[@bpbpbpbpbpbp]

It’s not effort and dedication keeping things that desperately need to be done from being done. It’s corruption. Almost every representative and elected official has interest in the wellbeing of the ultra wealthy.

[@markislivingdeliberately]

We think we can beat nature. Scientists and politicians think we can solve anything, but earth and nature as a whole are smarter than us by billions of years. Can’t work against nature. Use how nature works and design your farms around what’s best for nature and you’ll have more abundance than you know what to do with. But we won’t have as many corn and soy products. But at least we all won’t be sick fat and killing earth too.

[@lucybecker8]

And requires education.

[@Kelfuma]

The US government subsidizes a lot of these farmers and their agricultural products. Doesn’t that distort the market and encourage more inefficient water use?

[@SK-lt1so]

Do you want to eat?

[@Osiris02]

​@@SK-lt1so Yes, I want to eat in the future too so we need to stop growing to excess and wasting it.

[@DgurlSunshine]

ASJ CHICAGO BOARD OF TRADE. THEY IMPORT FOOD TO THE USA

[@DgurlSunshine]

@@SK-lt1so TRY A GARDEN

[@DgurlSunshine]

@@Osiris02 MONO-CROP-CULTURE IS UNSUSTAINABLE

[@jaehoony88]

So industry farming companies been abusing underground water in this country like it's unlimited resource, when in fact it is a very real limited resource. This can't continue.

[@divesaildivesss]

It's the tragedy of the commons.

[@kchididdy]

Yes, and they profit by robbing future generations. If we factored in environmental externalities, water would be much more expensive and we might use it more efficiently. Free market mechanics works but we need to price things correctly.

[@CircusInto]

Very American I would say

[@iqbalindaryono8984]

​@@divesaildivessswhat commons? Only the people farming are using it on an unsustainable rate

[@astebbin]

@@iqbalindaryono8984Google “Tragedy of the Commons,” this is a textbook case

[@TheHonestPeanut]

Because most of our crops aren't food for people.

[@Frank-pq7ff]

If they were crops for people we would need double the farmland we use now.

[@TK0_23_]

But we don't grow it and just throw it away. We use those crops for something.

[@TheHonestPeanut]

@@TK0_23_ no it's literally thrown out. This isn't a secret. It's not hard to find sources. AFBF, NASDA, USDA, third party data studies. Just look.

[@TurboLoveTrain]

​@@Frank-pq7ff this isn't true at all--this is a lie corporate farms have been telling since the 1900s. Permaculture has demonstrated, undeniably, that monoculture can not compete with permaculture for food output. We use monoculture because it makes it easier for the banks and Monsanto to control farms and farmers: Not because it give us higher food output than the alternatives. Imagine living in a world where if the farmers didn't like the policies the city centers forced on them they could simply stop feeding the cities--that's why we use monoculture, cities are parasitic and it would become very obvious if farmers cut the leash of corporate farming methods.

[@atp1130]

By way of animal feed it is

[@michaelbassett5990]

farming is not the problem, industry farming is

[@djayjp]

Pasture fed is much, much more environmentally destructive than factory farming. Both are horrible.

[@acm116]

Perhaps...how are you defining "industry farming?" The producers portrayed in this video were family farmers, doing their best to raise crops and make a living. It's not as if Cargill owns a bunch of farms and tractors. Agricultural production is rather fragmented business.

[@TimothyCHenderson]

@@acm116 Indeed. The vast majority of farms in the US are still owned by individual producers.

[@parwinder2930]

8 billions are the real problem

[@racebiketuner]

@@parwinder2930 Yup! This is not news to anyone who has studied soil science. The problem became obvious to me in 1973. The fix requires radically reducing human population. Anything else is a temporary measure.

[@freeheeler09]

I just got back from Phoenix after having worked in Arizona ten years ago. Phoenix is rapidly spreading like a malignant cancer across the desert. Even after decades of warnings about looming water shortages, and after year after year of rising temperatures, you drive through mile after mile after mile of new strip malls and low density housing. Visiting Phoenix is like watching the first twenty minutes of a post apocalyptic horror film. You know the end is coming soon soon and you know that it’ll be brutal, and you just can’t bring yourself to look away.

[@JetSkiSuper7]

That darn booming economy in Phoenix fuels the population growth. I lived there in the early ‘90’s and at that time, 10,000 people per month were moving there.

[@whazzat8015]

Can't yell "Get off my lawn" with no lawn.

[@prodigalpriest]

Well you can, but you'll look ridiculous doing it. 😅

[@floydblandston108]

This land used to be farmed for winter wheat, which it produced well, profitably, and without irrigation. A false economy driven by free groundwater and cheap capital allowed them to develop it well beyond its true ecological niche. I call that bad management; if we have a capitalism that can make you rich, we need one that can bankrupt you as well. Price the groundwater as a limited public resource open to minimum bid and competitive pressure.

[@acm116]

Winter wheat is good, along with forage. some of that land in the west should never be plowed, only grazed.

[@Shanaseeya]

And alot of Americans now have digestive breakdown leading to disease from the wheat boom that no one acknowledges. Yes can still happen if your protein source is being fed wheat.

[@halo7250]

Nothing will be done until it is too late..

[@LostMySauce]

America: We'll let the next generation handle that.

[@davidsalo8397]

Politics and economics will ensure that.

[@secretagentcat]

you all can go out, but you're afraid to physically put in an effort. americans who see this stuff should be up in arms.

[@jeriwhite1290]

We farm on the southern Texas Panhandle. Our part of the aquifer is basically pumped dry. It’s sad our entire economy is dependent on it.

[@jameskamotho7513]

​@@lewishamilton9577If you say this to people, they tell you that you are 'negative'...

[@roblowe8295]

⁠​⁠@@lewishamilton9577 peak oil was debunked a decade ago.

[@roblowe8295]

@@lewishamilton9577 by the oil riggers in Texas finding once empty oil pockets completely refilled within the Span of a a decade. To further shove the nail in the coffin on this, peak oil has been declared a multitude of times, time and time again we found it it’s bogus. So yes, peak oil has been debunked, several times in fact.

[@frederickheard2022]

My dad was born in Muleshoe, and his father (and his father) did a lot of farming in Littlefield and thereabouts. The tree rows planted during the Dust Bowl are still there, and it’s all drying out again.

[@Emiliapocalypse]

@@roblowe8295in what way has “finite resources are running out” been debunked

[@carleewalsh5502]

Maybe we need to rethink growing corn to raise cows.

[@doubles1545]

Yep. It’s much healthier in every way to raise livestock on native grasses. Not farmed grains.

[@greggpon7466]

Don't forget raising corn for transportation ethanol.🙄

[@AdamBechtol]

mmmmm

[@johndoh5182]

Maybe we need to rethink growing corn to power vehicles which is FAR worse. We haven't been a food superpower since we thought it was a good idea, or at least the politicians in the corn belt thought it was a good idea to raise corn for fuel. The US used to be a main producer of wheat, feeding a lot of the world until we made that shift for ethanol. And now Ukraine and Russia are the wheat basket and Russia is trying to take Ukraine and the last thing ANY American should want is Putin controlling a large percentage of the world's grain.

[@johndoh5182]

@@doubles1545 Most cattle ARE raised on pasture. They're finished off at large feed lots with grain to put fat into their meat. Chicken is WAY worse than cattle. And good luck with that whole "native grasses" thing. Even when cattle are on pasture, most farmers don't use tactics that would allow for most native grasses to do well. The reason why those grasses existed before Caucasians came to America is buffalo roamed very widely giving the earth time to recover, and horses didn't live in the Americas. There's regenerate agriculture farming, using cattle on pasture and rotating them into different sections so they don't overgraze any area, and then they tend to be followed with chicken on the same pasture, where the chickens will then scratch through the cow dung and eat the grubs of flies giving them protein and spreading that dung out which is better for the grasses. THOSE farmers can get native grasses growing pretty well, but whatever it is they have growing in pasture is what's best for cattle.

[@MichaelRay380]

We’re creating another dust bowl

[@niksutliff]

Probably worse, as the gargantuan industrial farming operations have way more power than the Okie farmers. Okie farmers had to pack up and leave their farms. These corporate farms will just continue until the land is a literal desert, then they'll pack up and leave nothing.

[@user-vw3dw6or9t]

No far worse

[@geelee1977]

Way, way worse

[@whazzat8015]

" I started out with nothing, and still have some of it left."

[@williamlloyd3769]

California has taken action on aquifer conservation and management but no one is happy about it, especially farmers. Really tough decision making.

[@iceboyo4]

It's really not tough though, we recognize the Tragedy of the Commons in fishing and harvesting other natural resources, why shouldn't we with water? It's super clear that regardless of farmers current happiness with it, that overall it's good for them.

[@SolaceEasy]

Results are visible on the map shown.

[@the-asylum]

Contra Costa county used to have major farms in the Brentwood/Tracy area. First they chased out the cattle farms, and built subdivisions in the land. Then they chased out several large farms. All subdivisions now. But they blame the remaining farmers for the lack of ground water and encourage people to use recycled water. It's complicated. And stupid. Because once the farms go, they bring in cookie cutter homes and don't care. Stacked on top of each other. Then wonder why the ground is dry.

[@bendy6626]

California is destroying the dams that made agriculture possible in the desert. Stupid is, as stupid does. But it's the farmer's fault.

[@grsafran]

Baloney, all California has done is to increase monitoring of the ground water. Of course the farmers aren't required to participate and can prevent the state from accessing their wells. It's all for show, making you FEEL something is being done but not actually doing anything. But we voted for the government who does these things and that's the way we like it.

[@russcrawford3310]

Invisible? ... folks must be blind ... the water crisis has been plain and obvious for decades ... we've moved to the city and forgot how food grows ...

[@grsafran]

It's not city folks who are depleting these aquafirs it's farmers planting crops that require a lot of water who are depleting them.

[@russcrawford3310]

@@grsafran - Do city-folk eat the food grown with all this water? ... the Midwest gets rain during the summer ... so pumping the aquifers dry is strictly short-term greed ... like meat production ...

[@jussikankinen9409]

God turn water into wine i mean sun

[@BlownMacTruck]

@@russcrawford3310 City dwellers don’t tell farmers what to grow. Farmers put themselves in this position by turning primarily from sustainable farming to industrial farming because they saw the dollar signs. But yeah. It’s city folks’ problem. 🙄

[@russcrawford3310]

@@BlownMacTruck - Yes ... city-folk have a problem if they haven't noticed the on-going water crisis ... it's been plain and obvious for decades ... grow your garden, and check the water bill ... is that sustainable? ...

[@killxAyush]

Don't use ethanol as a Fuel.

[@tylerk24]

Don’t have people mine for lithium for electric cars.

[@acm116]

I don't have a problem with using ethanol as a fuel - it burns cleaner, is renewable, etc. (just ask Brazil). But corn is a very inefficient crop for ethanol production.

[@AndrewJeffersonCotter]

It's bad for your engine@@acm116

[@maarten1115]

​@@tylerk24 Stop using cars altogether.

[@themiddlekingdom9121]

The world needs to use drip irrigation, instead of spraying.

[@jimdotcom1972]

you're going to drip irrigate and entire corn field? drip irrigation is more practical for some crops than others.

[@themiddlekingdom9121]

@@jimdotcom1972 That what the Israeli people have been using drip irrigation for years. As long as in the world's people want to save water like the Israelis, I bet they can do it, including the U S A.

[@acm116]

@@jimdotcom1972 Yep! That is easy to do. Subsurface irrigation is commonly used on corn and many other crops. I would argue that drip irrigation is practical for all crops.

[@acm116]

@@themiddlekingdom9121 You are absolutely correct. The Israelis are the leaders in water conservation and irrigation.

[@kchididdy]

Ultimately, that won't even matter because water is lost to transpiration (water evaporates from leaves).

[@theamateursurvivalist9249]

If there was ever an incentive for practicing rainwater catchment, it’s this. And yet some states in their own moral insanity, outlaw that practice or highly regulate it.

[@felixer80]

This is largely due to lawsuits from Nestle saying rainwater catchment starves their aquifers

[@phil20_20]

It's a good thing the EPA allowed fracking fluid to be pumped into some of our underground aquifers. God forbid we might try to use that water in the future. This way we don't have to worry about it!

[@Charlie-sh2du]

Regenerative agriculture replenishes aquifers. People are practicing it across Africa to stop the Sahara desert from spreading into the Sahel.

[@SolaceEasy]

Unspoken: High water use crops grown for export. Gulf nations own chunks of Arizona ag lands.

[@jamescurrie6910]

Our new gobernor took away the leasing land they used. But the rest is private property, a bone hard to munch

[@grsafran]

Yes they paid for that land and an American sold it to them. You know CAPITALISM.

[@jonallsop7502]

Michael Burry's (The Big Short) next investment was Water. Worth remembering

[@spacetoast7783]

Almost none of Michael Burry's other predictions have come true.

[@annsaunders5768]

Fix this for our childrens children, not just ourselves. For the bees, for the birds, for the animals 😢

[@ThriveFitnessBoston]

Not to mention the pfas & pfos in many springs & wells. Had a big one in my area shut down because levels got too high & my town's drinking water is undrinkable because of it too. Clean drinking water is becoming scarce.

[@lynnmoss2127]

It’s way past due to limit development around Phoenix, way too many people for the resources there

[@noconsentgiven]

We started having water shortage issues about the same time Americans started accepting buying bottled water...coincidence maybe🤔?

[@toniderdon]

This can be fixed: - Feed cows naturally, don't use corn or other crops. Let them eat grass. - Stop growing corn to make Ethanol for car fuel - Stop eating so much meat, grow crops that you can eat without going the extra step (plant -> feeds human. Not: plant -> feeds animal -> feeds human) - Stop using groundwater, use rainwater or rivers instead - Build new canals to get water from rivers to your farms

[@acm116]

I like your first two suggestions! If we get ruminants to consume grass then we won't have to worry about #3. Using above ground water (#4) is a bit tricky - usually the state regulates above ground water, especially water from rivers, and if the river goes from one state to another, then that complicates it even further. Just look at the Rio Grande - the amount of irrigation used depletes it to the point it is not much more than a trickle in Texas. Regarding #5, (a) canals are expensive, (b) canals can allow species to move from one body of water to another, which can be an ecological disaster, and (c) moving water from one watershed to another opens many environmental arguments and potential problems. But, you are correct - "this can be fixed."

[@andrewchatterton8594]

@@acm116#3 is by far the most important, I’m not vegan or anything but animal agriculture uses something like 85% of land/water of all agriculture in us and only provided like 10% of calories. Also to make the same amount of beef as we currently eat in the us you would need a land area equivalent to all of north and South America of pastures lol

[@pyroman2918]

Exactly. We don't need everyone to go vegan, it's enough if we just reduce meat consumption by half for example. It's even healthier

[@juha9703]

Why would we need cows in the first place? To give people cancer and million other diseases?

[@Gnomezonbacon]

dig dirt embankments around your fields to trap more rainwater at the surface and encourage puddle formation at the surface.

[@answerman9933]

TSMC is building semiconductor foundry in Arizona. A process that requires millions of gallons of water per day.

[@ivancho5854]

Yea, when they first decided upon Arizona I was utterly baffled. The financial incentives must outweigh the water disincentives.

[@dr.strangelove5708]

Yes it would be better if they were on the coast plenty of water there not sure if salt if bad for processing or cost of getting the salt out but I am sure where there is massive profit there is a way.

[@ivancho5854]

@@dr.strangelove5708 Or even just somewhere with lots of rainfall - Scotland? We have gills, webbed fingers and toes we get so much rain! 🌧️🤣

[@jefferyholcombe5189]

A lot of the problem is that that 50% of ground water is used in oil drilling and the rest is used to grow alfalfa that is shipped to Saudia Arabia to feed their horses. Then the rest is what the people get to use. Most of the problem is industry use that is being blamed on the dairy and food crop farmers!

[@whazzat8015]

Nuts to that. /s

[@hannahdigioia692]

and fracking makes water unpotable if it was used in the process. They tried to clean it, but it failed.

[@Rhotz-ix8ll]

In the United States there is insufficient recognition of “us” or “community” and too much emphasis on “me”. The pendulum can swing the other way, but on this issue a broad community approach is needed. (Good luck with that.)

[@Helios1001]

Plant native trees to retain water. It also might bring clouds of rain with enough evaporation.🌧️

[@thedude5040]

Lol there are no native forests in western kansas and very few native trees. There are more trees now than there was in the 1400s before Europe discovered America.

[@frederickheard2022]

There are practically no native trees in the Great Plains other than a few cottonwoods hanging onto the banks of small creeks. It’s an enormous dry steppe. That’s a big part of why I left. 😂

[@Solitaryman70]

Anything but blame FRACKING. 😡

[@user-qx1om2wj1h]

Yes fracking is also an issue that they should have brought up, but also can't avoid the issue with our terrible farming practices.

[@Solitaryman70]

@@user-qx1om2wj1h Absolutely 👍, Aren’t most of them owned by MONSANTO/BAYER and Big Banks? YIKES 😳, pick your poison’s wisely. When I read the farmers could no longer use their own SOIL anymore and they by LAW must use Monsanto Soil; I merely passed out thinking 🤔, How in the PUCK did that ever get pass our 3 Branches of the Government??? Welcome to the World of Genetically Modified Foods. 🤑😞🤬🤒😷🤮🤑….Every Presidential or Political Debate, this is NEVER DEBATED OR EVEN DISCUSSED. 🤫🤐🤑🤑

[@dr.strangelove5708]

Yes that has to play a factor in this.

[@frederickheard2022]

I grew up on top of the Ogallala in Texas. It looks like Amarillo is going to beef itself to death.

[@johnnytisso3481]

What’s happening with our planet!! Even in my town all the wells is getting dried out

[@SorminaEriana]

Thank you for sharing it

[@brendangalios1961]

FINALLY! Someone is talking about this

[@blazer9547]

Even India is running out of ground water

[@AdityaJape]

No, we have the leadership and both ancient and modern technology to solve the problem

[@keithlopes2010]

@@AdityaJape 🤣🤣

[@parwinder2930]

Green revolution fuc**d ground water level

[@ColtraneTaylor]

@@AdityaJape What is that ancient technology? And it seems like India is about to throw out that dictator they have now.

[@mind4lease554]

🔥 🔥 🔥 "this is fine" 🔥 🔥 🔥

[@ytjoemoore94]

Rural America resistant to change in defiance to basic logic? Who would have thought

[@TheBullet51]

I'm a Kansas resident.....the ethanol plants are a problem....more corn every year. It won't stop until the water is gone. All on purpose!!!

[@soltherapper]

So many federal laws , but none to maintain the agricultural heritage of America

[@melvinbarnett1910]

The state can also create such laws. Besides, conservation can't be legislated. If you abuse it, you should lose it.

[@acm116]

I'm curious how you would define "agricultural heritage" and why it is important that it be maintained? If we maintained all of the other industries that have fizzled out, then we'd have a lot of useless businesses. In general, I'd prefer for the states to handle this. Each state understands the challenges of that particular region better than the bureaucrats in Washington would. I haven't seen too many things the federal government manages well.

[@3rett115]

Yeah, that's right. More gov restriction will increase production to keep the exploding american population obese.

[@Jordan_Benzos_Peterson]

We should replace all corn farms with almond farms to really speed things up

[@chinookvalley]

🤣

[@user-qx1om2wj1h]

California: Waay ahead of you.

[@whazzat8015]

@@chinookvalley Stop crying, you are wasting water

[@jerryrichardson2799]

This has been a problem for decades, and _now_ the WSJ cares?

[@yatarookayama8329]

So this how the Democrats (Regime) gonna cause a famine if they win in Nov ! They gonna restrict the use of water 🤔🤔

[@turbofanlover]

Very interesting. Good vid.

[@adriennefried5368]

Stupid greedy developers and politicians.

[@justayoutuber1906]

Farmer use 80% of the water for crops that go to animals

[@AdamBechtol]

Stupid greedy farmers more like. "Let's grow alfalfa to ship to Dubai in a desert, while people are starved of water."

[@acm116]

@@AdamBechtol You have a point...in general, I don't have a problem with selling the folks in Dubai some alfalfa (or oranges, or wheat, or any other agricultural product). However, I do have a problem with growing irrigated alfalfa in the USA desert and then shipping it overseas. Similarly, I see some irony (hypocrisy?) with growing heads of irrigated iceberg lettuce (~80% water) in the desert (70% in CA and 30% in AZ), then shipping that water laden lettuce across the country to locations with plenty of water. It seems to me that it would be more efficient to bottle the irrigation water in the desert and then ship it to NYC /sarc/. Between the movement of water from the desert (in the form of lettuce) and fuel it takes to move it is ludicrous to me...but when you live in an affluent nation, you can do that...

[@AdamBechtol]

@@acm116 Mmmmhmm. You can, but "should" you? And for how long can we?

[@frederickheard2022]

It’s farmers growing too much feed for too many cattle to satisfy demand for too much beef.

[@Plan_it-Farm]

I've been thinking about this for years we really need to change our practices. Regenerative agriculture or holistic management for cattle is the answer. Why we are growing corn and alfalfa in these areas is beyond me. We need to be looking to regenerative management before we make a man made dessert. Were in the second dust bowl this one is worse than the 1920's because the soil is dead.

[@Lunaticsofearth]

Do you have any evidence that these techniques can be as effective as industrial agriculture?

[@acm116]

@@Lunaticsofearth Most cattle begin their lives on grass and their last six months on grain (at feedlots). With cattle and other ruminants, it could be done. It might take an extra few months, but it would be fine. You mentioned "industrial agriculture" and that term can have a lot of meanings. Most agriculture is conducted on farms owned by families, so I'm not certain to what you are referring. However, when animals are housed together with limited space, then some sort of processed feed is required for production (e.g., poultry, swine). This could be a rather long discussion, much too long for social media.

[@user-qx1om2wj1h]

"Why we are growing corn and alfalfa is beyond me." The reason is farm animals, these crops are being given to farm animals as food. A lot of water is also used as drinking water for farm animals and used to clean them after they've been slaughtered.

[@MrGuit12]

In cities in the far east, tube wells were banned. Several years later, old springs started to flow again.

[@unitoolzee]

Those stubborn old farmers will change their behavior when all of their wells run dry.

[@dewantara.arief.rahman]

I hope america will worry about their water more than worry about middle east countries

[@thedude5040]

Free Iran!

[@thedude5040]

The people of Iran deserve a better government

[@ehoops31]

so much dusty dirt in this video. Water just evaporates off of exposed dirt and when it rains, there is erosion rather than soaking into the ground. What would it take to cover that with cover crops or mulch?

[@acm116]

You've asked a great question that would require a long answer, but I'll shorten it: regenerative agriculture.

[@frederickheard2022]

This is the exact same land that turned into the Dust Bowl 100 years ago. You’d think we’d learn.

[@thedude5040]

@frederickheard2022 it's called CRP. We did learn our lesson and there won't be another dust bowl

[@dudarsky]

As a farmer the issue isn't possible to be solved without state intervention. Farmers can theoretically grow crops that aren't as much water reliant, but the thing is, there is no one to buy those crops. You need to change the entire industry there. Water rights by themselves are a weird thing, If I own the land, I should own the water below it, but if it is truly a human right and belongs to no one person, then why people need to pay for it? You should pay only for the infrastructure, not the water amount itself.

[@finally_dorian]

I remember once there were studies of feeding cattle seaweed... That is plenteous and doesn't affect the agricultural and land use profile like corn does... Subsidize the transport of seaweed?

[@avsystem3142]

Uneconomical except where seaweed is locally available, i.e., coastal areas.

[@finally_dorian]

@@avsystem3142 since when is that an excuse for the US government? 🙃 Thus my mention of subsidies.

[@dougsheldon5560]

Apparently, these people slept through the 1920's in Oklahoma

[@CyberQuince]

Had no idea the US was considered a “food superpower”. I’d never buy food that comes from USA, it’s widely known for low quality

[@Sr_art_3862]

They claiming it as they want 😂

[@frederickheard2022]

Look up where the world’s supply of wheat is grown.

[@CyberQuince]

@@frederickheard2022 "world's supply"? I use wheat from my own country which also exports it. So it's not like the US produces *all* the world's wheat lol. You people are so brainwashed & clueless about the rest of the world

[@ivancho5854]

Where do you think that food aid comes from? Many of the most populous and in some cases hostile people to the West (eg Yemen) are fed by the UN.

[@sergejadam8860]

@@ivancho5854 Ukraine, Russa, Gemany

[@Hardworkandrealestateprofits]

Interesting video 👍

[@kellyinfanger9192]

Nobody uses water. We only borrow it.

[@Mango_B]

Normally, I am for free markets solving problems. And perhaps free markets can fix this. But my question is, why not install a network of pipes that connect regions/cities around the USA and send water to places that need it? We have gas pipelines, electric grid, railroads, interstates, telecommunications grids, but no water network. If you have an area that has just been hit by a hurricane or record rainfall, turn on the pumps and send it to a drought stricken area.

[@Dear_Mr._Isaiah_Deringer]

✨rivers✨

[@TheMercilessEye]

This then raises the issue of, from what material will these pipes be made? Concrete would seem the obvious answer, but the global sand shortage is likely to make the cost of using concrete for such pipes prohibitive. Metal? Again, cost. Plastic? Yeah...that's really going to be popular...

[@ehoops31]

One major reason why the free market struggles with this in the US is because our land is not divided along watershed boundaries. There are videos of villages in India fixing their water problems, but they are able to get everyone on board because the villages are usually situated along watershed lines. In the US we need to get a lot more people on board since our land grid doesn't align.

[@_ata_3]

The free market doesn't replenishes the aquifers, on the contrary, it dries them up

[@marshall3278]

Bro we have a water network...you are just ignorant of it. A series of truly MASSIVE infrastructure projects carved up California and the Southwest and allowed all the desert cities like Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and Phoenix. Also, lol at thinking free markets solve problems.

[@AndreaDoesYoga]

Scary to think we're running out of water 😨

[@bretthatfield2516]

We are not running out of water. More than 70% of the Earth is water. We need to pump it from the oceans and desalinate it.

[@joekrige2673]

Stop animal agriculture now.

[@lousrp-lg3jr]

The largest user, I fixed my leaky toilet, now stop all those small operators from pumping my water!

[@SpazzyMcGee1337]

The federal government needs to step in and provide everyone a reality check.

[@Thebobbyman]

Voters don’t like reality checks. Or reality. Also most politicians are fighting over stupid stuff instead of real issues cause a lot of people just wanna hate and blame on people they don’t like and don’t care about water levels

[@acm116]

I'd prefer for the states to handle this. Each state understands the challenges of that particular region better than the bureaucrats in Washington would. I haven't seen too many things the federal government manages well.

[@SpazzyMcGee1337]

@@acm116 Why would one state intentionally harm itself to aid another? This is exactly what the federal government is for. They're selfish interests that lead individual states to do the thing that will harm everybody.

[@Jay-pp7uv]

The federal government can't even balance the budget

[@SpazzyMcGee1337]

@@Jay-pp7uv The problem is they don't have to. Until a better international currency comes around they can get away with constantly raising the debt ceiling.

[@BobSmith-fx9sz]

The word "crisis" is rarely used for real crisises

[@josepheridu3322]

true, it is always a crisis to control people

[@whazzat8015]

Yep. Just messiahs

[@oldfreddyfrenchfry1]

All that corn for ethanol fuel sure doesn’t help. :/

[@jimysk8er]

stop subsidizing corn. stop subsidizing crops period. nothing wrong with subsidizing farmers but if you eliminate risk in something and incentivize the demand then you end up with a spiraling system.

[@upside_down_01]

Am I looking at the B-roll wrong? Those farmers are irrigating by spraying a constant stream of mist all while there are severe gusts of wind constantly blowing through the flat plain? Why?

[@user-qx1om2wj1h]

I'm guessing drip irrigation would cost too much money, or as someone who lives in Kansas it could be do to the fact that Kansas has hard water and I heard it's difficult to use drip irrigation if you have hard water because it clogs up irrigation hoses faster. also Kansas is very windy and it can cause the soil to dry out faster (so you end up wasting more water do to the wind drying out the soil) or the wind blowing the water away from plants.

[@paulanderson3349]

I don't know how common that is anymore. There's a lot of LEPA irrigation, that's still above ground but limits evaporation.

[@user-ft3lh3kr9d]

Indoor vertical farming methods require 95% less water

[@fenrirgg]

Indoor vertical farms can't produce corn, sorghum, alfalfa, triticale, etc.

[@SpazzyMcGee1337]

Greenhouses reduce water use. Vertical farms only make sense for bringing select crops into more urbanized areas.

[@acm116]

...and require a lot more infrastructure and energy. Also, the accountants are not impressed with the ROI. Vertical farming seems to make sense for some horticultural specialty crops.

[@acm116]

@@fenrirgg well, they could, but it would be very expensive and not competitive. The grains are easy to grow in many parts of the world and they store (and ship) well, so it makes no sense growing them in an expensive controlled environment.

[@levismith7444]

Ethanol uses enormous amounts of water to grow the corn to make it

[@ufosrus]

Our resistance to change is the biggest obstacle.

[@malama_ka_aina]

Let's hope corporate stays out of this and actually allows the farmers and scientist to meet this challenge

[@jamescurrie6910]

This is a state that for 30 years denied global warming and continues industrial monoculture their farms land reducing the quality of the soil and the capacity to retain water. Science already have shown how to do agriculture that allow maintaining land and water resources. In fact some farmers across the USA already do it. What they are waiting for to adapt?

[@marshall3278]

They don't plan ever to adapt...they are going to sacrifice the earth's ability to sustain life for their own personal quality of life.

[@whazzat8015]

The Apocalypse

[@chinookvalley]

I live at the foot of the Rocky Mts. People seem to think we have a limitless amount of water. Not true. Wells are going dry. Creeks and streams are being diverted by ranchers and farmers. THEN that water is being polluted by both industries. Yes, we get snow, but with the growing number of humans, there is not enough water. THE human pop is growing unrestrained by people who think they are above the needs of other lifeforms, we don't have a chance. Greed rules.

[@paulanderson3349]

Global birthrates are at or below replacement levels. The human population is not "growing unrestrained", it will be shrinking in a couple more decades.

[@breecedjpancake8565]

@chinookvalley spot on

[@danstenis660]

Easy solution. Build reservoirs to contain all rain water. Don't let a single drop off rain water to flow into the ocean. This should be done a long time ago. About time this is done.

[@timmick6911]

For every complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple and wrong. H L Mencken

[@danstenis660]

@@timmick6911 Please enlighten us of your brilliant solution.

[@TheDoomWizard]

Yeah we're toast.

[@chinookvalley]

Bottom line: Too many humans.

[@ppetal1]

Fracking surely didn't help. We're heading for 3C worldwide temp above pre-industrial.

[@Guacamoc]

1:30 Nebraska out here reppen the state with cattle ranching hardly draining anything😎

[@builtwithsustainability6221]

The real question is has Kansas planted enough NEW trees since 1950 in their ag fields/pastures ? Trees produce water. I just see large fields with many access roads with no trees or even.

[@acm116]

I'm not certain that trees are native to that part of Kansas - it was all grasslands during a past era. I know they do quite well with sunflowers 🙂

[@user-qx1om2wj1h]

Farmers are more focused on making money then environmentally friendly practices, but I will say the part of Kansas I live in has a lot of trees. Also fracking is a big issues here in Kansas.

[@thedude5040]

@user-qx1om2wj1h western kansas has never had trees. Infact there are more trees than in the 1400s

[@user-qx1om2wj1h]

So they're just going to ignore the fact the water is also used to grow food for farm animals that are then slaughter for food, and that water is also used as drinking water for farm animals and used to clean the farm animal after they're slaughter.

[@thejollygreendragon8394]

There would be no Garden City if it wasn't for the Beef Industry, she said @ 1.44 Let me put it another way There will be no Garden City without the Aquifer

[@whazzat8015]

Maybe there shouldn't be a Garden City?

[@alnooooras]

Corn 🌽 is fooooooood not fuel ⛽️ That’s why we have water shortages 😢

[@user-qx1om2wj1h]

You forget how corn is also commonly used as live stock feed.

[@user-qr7ee2cp4y]

Too many people, same amount of water....

[@amateurgamer149]

Let the country subside and stupidity and greed win.🤔

[@jeffpeterson5791]

Our wells are drying up in Maryland, tons of rain , just last couple years. Our one grocery store is often sold out of water with empty bottles piled up outside for the 5 gal exchange bottles.

[@juangarcia-kq8zp]

How can we get the masses of common people to demand something be done to solve the problem in order to get them to assist with their own depopulation?

[@penguin32383]

Beef is by far the most water consuming agricultural product. It takes about 2000 gallons to get 1 pound of beef. Maybe the massive factory cattle farms in the area should have to pay a higher price for water.

[@ChopperChad]

semiconductor fabs use 2-4 million gallons a day and they’re being built in Texas and Arizona which already experience water shortages. Also, golf courses use about 2 million gallons a year. And don’t forget all the corn that used to make ethanol for fuel blends and all the cotton fields that are used for clothing. But let’s focus on just beef. 🤦‍♂️

[@penguin32383]

@@ChopperChad Those things are a literal drop in the bucket. This report even says "85% is used for agricultural irrigation".

[@acm116]

It does take a lot of water for beef, but that's okay...much of that water is returned to the earth in the form of urine. And in areas of the country with ample precipitation, accessing 2000 gallons of water is not a problem. In fact, the soil biome benefits from the cattle. You mention "massive factory cattle farms." I'm curious what you are referring to. Almost all (all?) cattle start on a farm, most on family farms, and begin their lives on their momma's milk and then grass. Only the final six months are on a feedlot.

[@roblowe8295]

@@acm116yeah some people never payed attention in biology/ecology class and it shows.

[@chillxxx241]

The United States needs to stop subsidizing when there are opportunities to purchase it cheaper from abroad. cell or rent the land to some green energy guys for wind, turbines, and solar farms instead of making corn into fuel.

[@irokpe6977]

Your first idea is very bad. Outsourcing production capacity to foreign nations will make America weak. Perhaps, they should stop using corn for feul and stop growing corn for cows. That would help

[@acm116]

I'd argue against those suggestions. Placing your food supply in the hands of a foreign entity reduces our national security. Green energy, it turns out, is not so green. The large wind turbine have their challenges (limited lifespan, non-recyclable materials, etc.), and the solar cells use a lot of rare earth materials that destroy other parts of the world. My suggestion would be to put the land into multi-species forage and allow intensive ruminant grazing.

[@josepheridu3322]

Sure, depend on other countries that are more likely to be hostile and hold food. What an amazing idea.

[@parwinder2930]

Import Indian cows there are plenty of them destroying farmer's crops

[@serafinacosta7118]

Keep on your backyard. No land grabbing please.

[@reluginbuhl]

Central to this topic is the idea of a public good. Too bad it was only introduced at the end of the video. Otherwise a very good video, especially from the conservative WSJ.

[@1aliveandwell]

Recall more than 20 yrs ago county trying to reduce water usage and get more water into groundwater from rainwater (some worked ) as start of saltwater intrusion, and since area was ag, needed to stop salt into ground water. Also recycling sewage water to landscape use (signs on those faucetts would say not potable). If research how peoples farmed in dry areas before pumping groundwater, might help. Varieties , maybe einkorn (dont know if need special equip. to harvest), old type corns, ....

[@gabrielpennosaraiva1893]

This landscape needs trees.

[@largedad4830]

Trees can't survive in Kansas It's super dry with harsh summers and winters. So rather than forests Kansas is covered in prairie

[@ClassyMonkey1212]

It needs grasslands

[@acm116]

Not likely. Grass is the species native to the area. It needs native grasses and forbs.

[@jillbelas7266]

It needs tall grass prairie not trees.

[@jerrellbevers6071]

Who would have thought that unchecked greed and unregulated water usage would go south on us. And the aquifer goes all the way to Nebraska....literally Ogallala, Nebraska....where it was discovered and hence named after.

[@rileyjoseph3488]

Nestle, coke, Pepsi, farming in the deserts. It’s almost like using all of the groundwater in unsustainable ways was a terrible decision to began with.

[@cuddlepoo11]

If Americans cut meat consumption in half, many of the water issues would go away as would many billions in health care costs. American diets are a disaster. People do not want to face that until they have a stroke, heart attack, bypass surgery, etc.