Depletion Of The Ogallala Aquifer
Ethan Meier
Ogallala Aquifer
The aquifer is an underground water bed that farmers in western Kansas use to irrigate. The aquifer is used for growing crops and raising cattle. There is not enough rain and it is causing droughts in western Kansas. Farmers are drilling water out of the ground and irrigating to continue to produce crops for the country. One fifth of the wheat, corn, cattle and cotton grown in the United States is irrigated by the Ogallala Aquifer.
(1) saturated thickness—the distance between the bottom of the aquifer, (2) bedrock, (3)the water table
Over use of the aquifer
In western Kansas the aquifer is drying up. The farmers are using to much water from the aquifer. The aquifer is recharging very slow because the farmers are using the water from the aquifer faster that it can be replaced. The growing population of the United States puts a high demand for water and other things that require water.
The changes in the Ogallala aquifer
Effects of over usage
If we use up the water in the aquifer in Kansas the land will become more like a desert than farm land. The amount of crops farmers produce will peak at 2040 and farmers won't be able to produce crops as they once did because the water would be gone. Western Kansas will become a desert if they continue to use the water from the aquifer. The aquifer will take hundreds of thousands of years to recharge.
Saving The Acquire
There are many ways to save the aquifer. The farmers could use drought-resistant crops and also use crop rotation as well. Farmers agreed to use less water from the aquifer by 20%. Some farmers immediately have cut down on water by 30%. it will be a difficult task to save the water forever.