Fighting The Water Wars

Murden descends from the air-conditioned respite of his pickup and ambles into the Longhorn, a local barbecue restaurant with neon beer signs and steer heads on the walls, to meet his water-district manager. Word is that a neighboring district has water to sell. With a phone call the deal is done. Murden doesn't flinch at the fact that he just spent more than $16,000 for 165 acre-feet of water. "I've never paid that much for water before," he says. "But I'm glad to have it."

© 2002