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Hay grown for cattle consumes nearly half the water drawn from Colorado River, study finds (www.latimes.com)

submitted 7 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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Archived copies of the article: ghostarchive.org archive.today

The study itself is here

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[–] [email protected] 14 points 7 months ago* (last edited 7 months ago) (5 children)

I do not understand why we don't just plant switch grass and be done with it? It's native to a large swath of the arable land, doesn't require as much (in some areas any) irrigation and it's good for the soil. https://cropwatch.unl.edu/benefits-switchgrass-hay-and-forage

https://utia.tennessee.edu/publications/wp-content/uploads/sites/269/2023/10/SP701-B.pdf

Edit: Also 6.24 is closer to a third of 19.25 than it is a half. Which is still a massive amount of water. Why inflate the numbers by saying nearly a half?

[–] [email protected] 4 points 7 months ago

It's because you have to use your water to keep water rights. Flood irrigating alfalfa is an easy way to use up a lot of water to keep the rights without having to manage more complex farms. The current way that water rights works creates perverse incentives.

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