{"id":22843,"date":"2020-11-18T21:37:48","date_gmt":"2020-11-18T21:37:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/?p=22843"},"modified":"2020-11-20T02:27:39","modified_gmt":"2020-11-20T02:27:39","slug":"farmers-are-depleting-the-ogallala-aquifer-because-the-government-pays-them-to-do-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/farmers-are-depleting-the-ogallala-aquifer-because-the-government-pays-them-to-do-it\/","title":{"rendered":"Farmers are depleting the Ogallala Aquifer because the government pays them to do it"},"content":{"rendered":"

Matthew R Sanderson<\/a>, Kansas State University<\/a><\/em>; Burke Griggs<\/a>, Washburn University<\/a><\/em>, and Jacob A. Miller<\/a>, Kansas State University<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

A slow-moving crisis threatens the U.S. Central Plains, which grow a quarter of the nation\u2019s crops<\/a>. Underground, the region\u2019s lifeblood \u2013 water \u2013 is disappearing, placing one of the world\u2019s major food-producing regions at risk.<\/p>\n

The Ogallala-High Plains Aquifer<\/a> is one of the world\u2019s largest groundwater sources, extending from South Dakota down through the Texas Panhandle across portions of eight states. Its water supports US$35 billion<\/a> in crop production each year.<\/p>\n

But farmers are pulling water out of the Ogallala faster than rain and snow can recharge it. Between 1900 and 2008 they drained some 89 trillion gallons<\/a> from the aquifer \u2013 equivalent to two-thirds of Lake Erie<\/a>. Depletion is threatening drinking water supplies and undermining local communities already struggling with the COVID-19 pandemic<\/a>, the opioid crisis<\/a>, hospital closures<\/a>, soaring farm losses<\/a> and rising suicide rates<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Map<\/a>
Changes in Ogallala water levels from before the aquifer was tapped in the early 20th century to 2015. Gray indicates no significant change. Water levels have risen in some areas, especially Nebraska, but are mostly in decline.<\/span>
\nNCA 2018<\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In Kansas, \u201cDay Zero\u201d \u2013 the day wells run dry \u2013 has arrived for about 30% of the aquifer<\/a>. Within 50 years, the entire aquifer is expected be 70% depleted<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Some observers blame this situation on periodic drought<\/a>. Others point to farmers, since irrigation accounts for 90% of Ogallala groundwater withdrawals<\/a>. But our research, which focuses on social and legal aspects of water use in agricultural communities, shows that farmers are draining the Ogallala because state and federal policies encourage them to do it.<\/p>\n

A production treadmill<\/h2>\n

At first glance, farmers on the Plains appear to be doing well in 2020. Crop production increased this year. Corn, the largest crop in the U.S., had a near-record year<\/a>, and farm incomes increased by 5.7% over 2019<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But those figures hide massive government payments to farmers. Federal subsidies increased by a remarkable 65%<\/a> this year, totaling $37.2 billion. This sum includes money for lost exports from escalating trade wars, as well as COVID-19-related relief payments.<\/a> Corn prices were too low to cover the cost of growing it this year, with federal subsidies making up the difference.<\/p>\n

Our research finds that subsidies put farmers on a treadmill<\/a>, working harder to produce more while draining the resource that supports their livelihood. Government payments create a vicious cycle of overproduction that intensifies water use. Subsidies encourage farmers to expand and buy expensive equipment to irrigate larger areas.<\/p>\n

\"Irrigation<\/a>
Irrigation pump in Haskell County, Kansas.<\/span>
\nMatthew Sanderson\/Kansas State University<\/span>, CC BY-ND<\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

With low market prices for many crops<\/a>, production does not cover expenses on most farms. To stay afloat, many farmers buy or lease more acres. Growing larger amounts floods the market, further reducing crop prices and farm incomes. Subsidies support this cycle.<\/p>\n

Few benefit, especially small and midsized operations. In a 2019 study of the region\u2019s 234 counties from 1980 to 2010, we found that larger irrigated acreage failed to increase incomes or improve education or health outcomes<\/a> for residents.<\/p>\n

Focus on policy, not farmers<\/h2>\n

Four decades of federal, state and local conservation efforts have mainly targeted individual farmers, providing ways for them to voluntarily reduce water use<\/a> or adopt more water-efficient technologies<\/a>.<\/p>\n

While these initiatives are important, they haven\u2019t stemmed the aquifer\u2019s decline. In our view, what the Ogallala Aquifer region really needs is policy change.<\/p>\n

A lot can be done at the federal level, but the first principle should be \u201cdo no harm.\u201d Whenever federal agencies have tried to regulate groundwater<\/a>, the backlash has been swift and intense, with farm states\u2019 congressional representatives repudiating federal jurisdiction over groundwater<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Nor should Congress propose to eliminate agricultural subsidies, as some environmental organizations<\/a> and free-market advocates<\/a> have proposed. Given the thin margins of farming and longstanding political realities, federal support is simply part of modern production agriculture.<\/p>\n

With these cautions in mind, three initiatives could help ease pressure on farmers to keep expanding production. The U.S. Department of Agriculture\u2019s Conservation Reserve Program<\/a> pays farmers to allow environmentally sensitive farmland to lie fallow for at least 10 years. With new provisions, the program could reduce water use by prohibiting expansion of irrigated acreage, permanently retiring marginal lands and linking subsidies to production of less water-intensive crops.<\/p>\n

These initiatives could be implemented through the federal farm bill<\/a>, which also sets funding levels for nonfarm subsidies such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program<\/a>, or SNAP. SNAP payments, which increase needy families\u2019 food budgets, are an important tool for addressing poverty. Increasing these payments and adding financial assistance to local communities could offset lower tax revenues that result from from farming less acreage.<\/p>\n