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There's also a plausible case that even some water-hungry agricultural production may be sustainable with more water-efficient techniques... but someone operati
by wwweston 5y ago
There's also a plausible case that even some water-hungry agricultural production may be sustainable with more water-efficient techniques... but someone operating under water right frameworks where use isn't metered has no immediate incentive to adapt to them.
It really seems like the framework of water usage in the west needs some serious reconsideration.
- ZeroGravitas 5y agoI assume most of these farmers are also getting massive government subsidies, so you possibly wouldn't have to get into the nasty legal tangle of the water rights, just remove subsidies from anyone doing anything they shouldn't be doing, that can include: spraying the wrong pesticides, wasting too much water, not using techniques that store carbon vs release carbon/methane, avoiding monocultures etc. There is an argument for subsidizing farmers, but it also effectively makes them part of the government and somehow those two things are kept very politically seperate.
- ipnon 5y agoOn the federal level, the agricultural industry receives Covid relief stimulus sized subsidies every four or five years. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_United_States_farm_bill https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_United_States_farm_bill