In late April of this year, European astronomers announced the discovery of the first potentially habitable Earth-like planet outside our solar system where conditions are such that oceans, and thus life, may be possible. Of the more than 200 planets detected orbiting nearby stars since 1995, the new discovery, dubbed Gliese 581c, is rocky like Earth and the first small planet detected at the right distance from its star to harbor oceans. Of course, water is what scientists at NASA have long believed to be absolutely necessary in their search for life elsewhere. Why? The answer is because water is essential for life here on Earth.
No one knows the importance of water to life more than people who make their living in agriculture. Get a group of Ag folks together and the topic of rain will usually come up within a very few minutes. Too much rain at the wrong time is bad, too little rain when it is needed can be even worse. The answer for agriculture in most cases is irrigation of some kind. That brings on a whole new set of problems for producers who choose to go to the time and expense of irrigation systems.
The availability of water resources grows more valuable every day as competition for these resources continues to grow. Metropolitan areas around the country are tapping valuable aquifers that the agricultural business has depended on for years and the result is an alarming and continuing drop in water levels.
While nearly three quarters of the earth’s surface is covered by water, only 2.7% of water on the Earth is fresh water, and over two thirds of this is frozen in glaciers and polar ice caps, leaving only 0.007% of this vast resource available for human use. Demand for water already exceeds the available supply in many areas of the globe, and many more areas expect to be added to this imbalance in the near future. While it is assumed by most people that everyone has the right to water, the legal rights to water don’t necessarily follow rules of logic.
Pecan producers have to be aware of the potential loss of water rights in their areas. Because a mature pecan tree will use on average 200 gallons of water per day through transpiration, it is very important to make sure that tree has plenty of water for development of quality nuts. Therefore, maintaining water rights for the pecan industry is vital to the continuation of the industry and the responsibility of maintaining these rights lies squarely with the pecan producers themselves and the organizations that represent them. A pro-active approach by producers is the best way to insure continued access to water resources.
One pecan grower who understands this issue more completely than most is Glenn Honaker, Vice president of the Texas Pecan Board and President of the Middle Pecos Ground Water Conservation District. “When you have a high demand crop like pecans and you have metropolitan areas that are growing in population the impact on growers is going to be greater and greater,” said Glenn.
While you may not be aware of it, there is a field of law dealing with the ownership, control, and use of water as a resource and is referred to as water law. You might liken it most closely to property laws, but there are several very important variations to water law, and it is becoming more complex all the time. Such things as environmental laws and greater water demand from major population centers, which have a large voting block, are influencing water laws. Since water is essential to life as well as a variety of economic activities, laws attempting to govern it have far-reaching implications.
However, unlike land, water has unique features that make it difficult to regulate. Water supplies can vary by year and season as well as location, and many users can use it simultaneously without depriving one another of that resource. For example a dam might be constructed to generate electrical energy and simply divert the water for a short time and then return it to its natural course without any consumption. Recreational users might enjoy boating on the lake of the hydroelectric plant and fishermen might take fish from that lake. On the other hand, use by agriculture results in consumption of the water resources, and stops the flow so to speak. So in theory, each type of activity has its own needs and can be regulated separately.
Water rights in the US vary in different parts of the country based on different criteria. Usually these water rights are based upon the historical perspectives of those who settled the region, or in some cases the geological and hydrological aspects of the region. For example, in the states east of Texas, (with the exception of Mississippi) the Riparian Doctrine, which is based in European law, is followed because primarily Europeans settled these areas. Riparian doctrine allows anyone whose land has frontage on a body of water to use water from it.
By contrast, most western states follow the Prior Appropriation Doctrine, which gives a water right to whoever first puts water to beneficial use. Each state will vary of course on the application of the prior appropriation doctrine. Texas, for example, and the states directly north of it, and Mississippi have a mixture of systems. But with growing populations and increasing demand for water resources, conflict is inevitable.
“The best way to deal with water issues is to become involved when it is still a campfire, not a bonfire,” said Glenn. “There are several things that pecan growers can do to keep water flowing to their orchards. For one thing, keep meticulous records of your water usage. That allows you to have a history of your usage to show if anyone ever challenges the amount of water you use in your production. For example, Texas is governed by the ‘rule of capture’ unless there is an established ground water conservation district. That means if you drill a well and you pump the water to the surface, you can pump and use it however much you want.”
“However, if you have an established history of usage prior to a new user coming in and using a lot of water, you have some recourse to protect your investment. You can show that you have a prior usage history that will help insure that you don’t loose your water table.” Glenn went on to say, “Out here in Pecos County we try and budget water according to usage. A grain crop might only require three acre feet per year while my pecan orchards will use about five acre feet per year. In other words we want to make sure that the water is being put to good use and isn’t running down the bar ditch.”
Conservation is another step that pecan producers can take in a pro-active stance in protecting their water rights. Glenn said, “Be as efficient in the use of the water you have as you can be. We use a soil moisture probe to determine when we need to irrigate. That may change depending on the temperature and soil conditions, but we don’t just run water on the orchard just because it seems like its time to. Growers should also use the most efficient means of irrigation they can.”
The type of irrigation system used should be carefully considered according to Glenn. “We flood the orchard here at Belding Farms, but considering this is a mature orchard with established root systems under the entire area, we aren’t wasting any water, but if I were putting in a new orchard I would probably go with a drip system out here in West Texas. As hot and dry and windy as it is out here, a sprinkler system would loose about 50 percent of the water used to evaporation before it ever hit the ground. The main thing is to show some responsibility when irrigating.”
Another thing that Glenn advised pecan growers to do is to become involved with the local ground water conservation district. “Go to their meetings, listen to what’s going on, get on the board and have a voice in what direction they are taking.” He also said, “If you don’t have a ground water conservation district in your area it might be a good idea to establish one to protect your usage and rights.”
Finally he advised growers to be aware of what is happening at the state capital. “Pay attention to what bills are being passed by the legislature, read the papers, watch the Internet, talk to your legislators. It’s not good to wake up some morning and find out that you are now in violation of a new law that has just come into effect—and you didn’t even know it was passed.”
Water rights are going to become more of an issue in the future as the voting population in the cities votes water for themselves rather than for agriculture. Producers must stay ahead of the game by staking their claim to water rights now, rather than trying to beg back those rights down the road. As Glenn said, it takes less water to put out a campfire than a bonfire.