Liquid Gold

To be sure, scientists have been watching the depletion of the Ogallala for decades. Years of drought haven't helped either. But the corn-based ethanol boom has added pressure, and money, to keep the tap on. So to save the river and their water, Adamson and a group of surface water-right holders sued in 2005 to shut off the wells. A hearing is set for June. If they win, hundreds, maybe thousands of groundwater wells irrigating corn could be shut off instantly. "It would devastate the economy," says Doug Sanderson, the city manager of Yuma, the county seat.

Yuma County farmers face another water threat, this one from neighboring Kansas. The downstream state has struggled for decades to get its fair share of the Republican's waters. Tensions peaked eight years ago when Kansas brought a lawsuit against Colorado and Nebraska to the U.S. Supreme Court—and won. Today, the two states still owe Kansas enough water to supply a small city for a year. But, like a shopaholic with credit cards, Colorado's groundwater wells keep pumping. "We're at a junction with the interstate compact," says Dave Barfield, chief engineer for Kansas. "[Kansas] farmers are being hurt. They are telling me to go get 'em …. And we are." Last month, Kansas demanded its water, suggesting Colorado and Nebraska shut down groundwater wells. If things get worse, the Supreme Court could order it. The threat has sent Colorado's politicians, farmers and others scrambling, and proposed solutions are as perplexing as the problems.

To send Kansas its water—and keep the Colorado well on--a state legislator is pushing to drain the Bonny Reservoir, a popular border lake called the "crown jewel" of eastern Colorado. It's a key stopping point for migratory birds, a fishery maintained by the state, and leased by Colorado from the federal government, who are not likely to let the water go. Still, the bill's sponsor, state Sen. Greg Brophy of Yuma, has made the message clear: "We can't value fish over farmers."

Yuma corn farmers have come up with their own idea. Last month, the local Republic River Water Conservation District, a board responsible for keeping Colorado in water compliance with Kansas, approved the funding for a multi-million dollar pipeline that will pump water into the Republican River from a farm willing to retire 6,000 acres. Water will flow to Kansas. Problem solved. The source of that water? The Ogallala Aquifer. It's an idea some have called robbing Peter to pay Paul. "It is to a degree," says Ken Knox, Colorado's chief deputy state engineer. "But we're trying to maintain the entire social-economic production in this part of Colorado."

What's becoming clear is that the price to keep ethanol profitable is not cheap. The purchase of those wells will cost more than $50 million—a market-maker price tag that's even catching the eye of the surface-water right owners. "You know, money is an enticing thing," Adamson said. "It's great to be noble. Sometimes it's hard to be noble. But you've got to take care of your family." One attorney close to the case is more succinct: "[Surface-water owners] are probably just waiting for the right price." Should the right price come along, Ogallala's groundwater will be left uncontested, at least in Colorado, a likely scenario. As for the Republican River? "We know we have a finite resource. We know it won't last forever," says Yuma city manager Sanderson. "But we certainly don't respect the resource more than we respect the people."

Scientists and engineers say there's a clear lesson from the Republican River saga: water and energy are inextricably linked. "They will be the two driving forces of the future," says Knox. "And we're starting to see the future in this region." Professor Schnoor calls ethanol simply "a bridge fuel" to undiscovered and truly environmentally friendly technology. Meanwhile, with warm months just around the corner and a meeting with state officials in Denver to discuss the pipeline that he opposes, Adamson is frustrated. "Trying to solve problems by using the same old techniques doesn't solve the problem," Adamson says. "We're going to make the area a desert. It's going to be uninhabitable." And that would be a high price to pay.

© 2008