Arizona farmers slammed by water cuts (Phoenix, Yuma: neighborhood, to buy, luxury)

[thinkalot]

Grow things where it rains.

[gemstone1]

Saudis aside, AZ farmers use lots of water too, as mentioned, 'cause we like cheap winter veggies grown in Yuma/Wellton.

Then there is AZ cotton....another crop that should be abandoned in AZ.

[phetaroi]

When I was thinking of moving to Arizona, I thought that it's a desert and it's gonna be hot. So I don't really complain about the heat in the summer.

But who are these farmers who had the bright idea of farming in a desert? I mean, duh!

[fluffythewondercat]

Originally Posted by phetaroi

When I was thinking of moving to Arizona, I thought that it's a desert and it's gonna be hot. So I don't really complain about the heat in the summer.

But who are these farmers who had the bright idea of farming in a desert? I mean, duh!

Goodyear Tire and Rubber.

[recycled]

Originally Posted by gemstone1

Google is your friend Norty. The Saudi's have purchased Colorado River Valley land with associated water rights, they grow 8-9 cuttings of alfalfa (a very water intensive crop) per year, which they send to their country to feed their dairy herds. They transform AZ water and ship it as alfalfa....So yeah, it is a hell of a pipe.

I've driven along I-8 past Wellton, Yuma and the Imperial Valley many dozens of times. Years ago I noticed bales of alfalfa being loaded into containers next to the fields, and thought it was odd. Most alfalfa is transported from field to distribution center via flatbed trucks which are easier to load than containers. Plus, the flatbed trucks can stack the bales higher than the 8 or 9 foot height of a container.

Not long after that I read about the increasing amount of alfalfa that is exported from the southwest to the middle east (not just Saudi Arabia). The article I read explained how that is essentially the export of water, just like you described above. Then I realized that the containers were next to the fields for shipping the alfalfa by rail to a port (probably Long Beach / Los Angeles), where they could be loaded onto a ship heading for the middle east.

[corydon]

For those who think, no way....


https://youtu.be/8ZwBSjBgMXg

[take57]

Wait until those microprocessor fab plants that everyone is getting silly about come online. Those things hoover down a ungodly amount of water most of which can not be reclaimed.

[Valley Native]

Originally Posted by take57

Wait until those microprocessor fab plants that everyone is getting silly about come online. Those things hoover down a ungodly amount of water most of which can not be reclaimed.

Do those chip factories consume 74% of the water like agriculture does? My understanding is that, even though these chip fabrication plants consume an enormous amount of water, they also recycle it, and they have the methods to capture evaporated water & return it to the enclosed pools. Farming still guzzles far more water in comparison.

[hikernut]

Semiconductor fans do use a lot of water, but yes they recycle…

https://www.theverge.com/22628925/wa...rizona-drought

[motormaker]

Originally Posted by gemstone1

Saudis aside, AZ farmers use lots of water too, as mentioned, 'cause we like cheap winter veggies grown in Yuma/Wellton.

Then there is AZ cotton....another crop that should be abandoned in AZ.

Just found tis out.

Arizona produces enough cotton each year to make two T-shirts for everyone in the US.