After a Colorado farmer suffered a massive heart attack, his doctor gave him some unusual medical advice – to no longer talk about water.
As The Greeley Tribune reports, Harry Strohauer farms in Gilcrest, Colorado and Like dozens of farmers along the South Platte River, has suffered from the effects of curtailed well pumping, the result of legislation, a Supreme Court case and battles with surface water rights owners.
The court order forced Strohauer to stop pumping, resulting in hundreds of acres of dried out corn and rotted potatoes caused by a rise in the water table.
In 2006, at least half the wells along the South Platte River Basin were either reduced or shut down and thousands of wells couldn’t be operated without a requirement that farmers replace portions of what they pump and that changed the face of farming practically overnight.
For farmers, the formulas used to determine how long recharge water takes to get to the river and how many days they're able to pump are a headache-inducing mess.
