4 ms·
Here's a question, why are we putting all those resources and efforts into farming in a desert?
by uoaei 10mo ago
Here's a question, why are we putting all those resources and efforts into farming in a desert?
- bell-cot 10mo agoDesert land was cheap. Water seemed plentiful and cheap. And back when the system was set up, doing that looked like "Progress".
- chneu 10mo agoCows mostly. Like 60-75% of all ag land in the US is to grow feed for cows. Mostly in dry environments. This is because the old water rights were distributed on a "use it or lose it" basis which encourages wasteful use.
- jandrewrogers 10mo agoIn some desert areas there is no other use for the water because the aquifers are fragmented. People don't live there, you can't readily move the water to somewhere useful, and it won't flow anywhere useful on its own. Agriculture is a way to convert water into something easily transported. This doesn't apply to many places but in the desert Mountain West this is often the case. Also, while it may seem surprising, a few crops really thrive in the high desert e.g. onions.
- uoaei 10mo agoThis is absolutely not the case when it comes to Nevada agriculture. They're moving water in from outside the state to feed ag for places where people do live.
- dragonwriter 10mo ago> Here's a question, why are we putting all those resources and efforts into farming in a desert? Because moving water to where the fertile land is is easier than vice versa. And because agriculture is the base on which civilization rests.
- uoaei 10mo agoOk so again, why move the water to dry relatively bio-inactive desert?