Water Scarcity on the Texas High Plains: The Ogallala Aquifer

[@CoreyStudios2000]

I say we should preserve the status quo of Texas by standing up against this dreaded drought and work together to supply water to the region and and do what we must to save our beautiful state!

[@bradleymosman8325]

When oil wells are drilled, waist water is produced. It is often disposed of down disposal wells. Using the same concept, could wells be used to recharge the aquifer? They could be located at carefully selected sites where rain runoff is significant. I'm a layman to this, so its just a thought.

[@erichemingway5294]

Look at the recharge program that India has set up. Would be a great project to set up.

[@lotusdell]

So...as the aquifer gets depleted are sinkholes likely?

[@TheBandit7613]

No. It's not an undeground lake. Think of it like this. Fill a bucket with rocks and gravel, then pour water into it. The water fills the voids. The ground overall can sink a little. But not like Florida sinkholes.

[@cookingupastory]

It's more complicated a picture than moral outrage can grasp. You may wish to check out the written part of this video post for a better perspective of a complicated set of issues: (Check the post link in the description field above) The short answer here is this: it takes considerable time and available resources for such a large area with many producers (37,000 sq. miles) to significantly change without also impacting the economy of the region . Thanks!

[@cookingupastory]

@WATRnews Thank you!

[@cookingupastory]

Before this project, I had no clue either, @blismwithmyblizblop . Like a majority of people (so it seems), I thought it was like an underground lake. I love how she explained it - filling a coke bottle with rocks and gravel, etc., at 4:47. Now it makes sense!

[@NoEcologyNoEconomy]

This mindless attitude toward water is very similar to Peak Oil denial. People refuse to accept evidence of scarcity until TSHTF, then they try to blame others for their own shortsightedness, or demand reparations. All most people care about is immediate income. This aquifer draw-down is essentially "Dust Bowl Part 2" in the making.

[@cookingupastory]

@BigHeadFarm Thanks!

[@AnthonyRizzo2]

The problem as I see it is not water shortage or oil shortage (because those problems have the same root cause) The problem is corporate greed and its wide reaching influence. Think back to the invention of the automobile, back then the electric automobile seemed to be the obvious choice for the direction of that emerging technology that is until oil was discovered to be abundant and free for the taking. Once that happened a few people with a lot of capital and political sway pulled a few strings and the internal combustion engine became the only acceptable way to propel the automobile. Remember the public did not favor this smelly loud machine, they favored the electric motor. The same thing happened with American farming practices. At what point did American farms cease to be decentralized local entities and became these mega industrial complexes primarily based in deserts out west where massive amounts of water have to be redirected from their natural courses in order to sustain them? You don't have to search far to notice that modern suburbs were built on farmland owned by small farmers mostly black who were driven of their land by Jim crow policies. These suburban homes were then sold at marked up prices to white exurbanites fleeing from the influx of black farm migrants seeking work in the urban factories after they had been driven of their land or forced to sell of cheap. By the way the marked up home prices helped prop up the banking industry, the demand for timber and other natural resources that we now find in short supply. This wasn't accidental it was an intentional act to control the direction of industry in America. You can't control the price of meat, grain, dairy or produce if thousands of farmers nation wide are competing in a free market economy, no the only way to control this market is by owning or controlling all the farms, all the seeds and all the resources that make these things grow. The problem is as simple as the solution. Decentralize these farms. Corporate farms are monopolies that should not exist. Local, Permaculture,co-ops, free range, CSA, seasonal, poly-culture and sustainability are all words that should be part of the average american's vocabulary. Put this into practice and nobody will run out of water.

[@blismwithmyblizblop]

This is such a good video. I neve knew that aquifers were like this.

[@WATRnews]

Good job!

[@toni4729]

At last, someone who sees cattle/animals are useful at last.

[@toni4729]

The fact is we're going to have to go back to the old way before the water runs out. It will run out one day and you can't wait till it's too late.

[@AllanLoveJr]

That's all they care about. Profits. And not the huge amount of Water they take out of the ground. Let them all suffer.

[@cookingupastory]

@olov244 Pay attention to nature and you'll see an ecosystem where each element plays an important part. Much the same thing with these integrated systems, I believe. The soil cannot thrive by way of a monoculture, as you state.

[@bobanderson2895]

Fresh water?...I've been saying this for years...build pumping stations along the Mississippi river...then build a network of pipelines to pump that water to the farming areas that need it the most throughout the United States. Make the oil company's pay for the infrastructure in exchange for allowing the Keystone Pipeline to be built. Not only would this solve the water problem, but it would create thousands of jobs.

[@erichemingway5294]

Bob Anderson i had a similar idea of huge pumping stations with a pipeline to huge storage tanks for filtration and then put in to specifically designed recharge sites for our aquifers. The biggest part of my plan is to ensure that the pumpstations have the capacity to do 100,000-200,000 cfs and a maxium storage in the system of 840,000,000 gallons (one supertanker holds 84,000,000 gallons of oil) so basicly 10 super tankers spread across the system.

[@toni4729]

How long do you think it would take to destroy the river? It would you know.

[@bobhennis3585]

one thing i'll never understand, where is it written that every square inch of land has to produce something. why can't a patch of dirt be a patch of dirt. the area of texas in this filmis a place that should produce prairie grass nothing else. if it wasn't modified with emptieng the aquafir no man would live there. same stupidity for the valley in cal. man in all his wisdom decided to turn pure desert into farm land. all it took was empting the colorado river and every other water for 1000 miles.we have enough food for all of us and our animals without using these areas. let some of these areas go back to nature and save the water used to create them. we are running out of water and when we do poeople will die1000.s will die then millions. doing the smart thing now will help.

[@TheBandit7613]

You know jack chit. That's what you know.

[@ritasanchez3794]

R

[@Pangolinx1]

But it tastes like sorghum. Yuck. Better you feed the sorghum to chickens; then it tastes like chicken.

[@TheRedsoxboy101]

??? this is boring