Wasn't sure if this qualified as "science" as it is just one person's anecdote.
But it touches on a couple of points:
First, the author brings up the greening of the fields - this is corn, folks. Corn. Water -intensive corn. In the Great American desert, also known as the High Plains. Most likely for ethanol and then feed filler with the depleted material for the feedlots. Destroying the environment to save the environment. SIGH
Second, the author gets a couple of things wrong - cattle do not live in feedlots. Cattle are raised in fields until they are ready to be fattened. THEN they get sent to the feedlots. I lived in Dodge City, KS (home of 2 major packing plants and the US's largest feedlot right on the outskirts of tow. "Smell of money" they said when the wind pushed the manure smell or the mid-afternoon blood burn smell over the town.) and this was going on 20 years ago, becoming more prevalent asd ethanol burning becomes more and more prevalent and subsidized.
Third, the state of Texas uses the strong and consistent winds of the High Plains in the Panhandle and West Texas to generate power for the entire state. The state of Texas is separated from the rst of the countries electrical grids - there is the Eastern US grid, the Western US grid, and Texas. Texas, starting under Governor GWB, endeavoured to make Texas energy sufficient internally - and wind power was a big part of this. Currently, roughly 15-18% of Texas energy derives from wind power. The turbines the author sees are not running water pumping stations, they are lighting up Dallas, Amarillo, Austin, Houston and San Antonio. This does not diminish the concept that the use of the Ogallala Aquifier to grow corn in a desert is a pretty terrible idea.
Wasn't sure if this qualified as "science" as it is just one person's anecdote.
But it touches on a couple of points:
First, the author brings up the greening of the fields - this is corn, folks. Corn. Water -intensive corn. In the Great American desert, also known as the High Plains. Most likely for ethanol and then feed filler with the depleted material for the feedlots. Destroying the environment to save the environment. SIGH
Second, the author gets a couple of things wrong - cattle do not live in feedlots. Cattle are raised in fields until they are ready to be fattened. THEN they get sent to the feedlots. I lived in Dodge City, KS (home of 2 major packing plants and the US's largest feedlot right on the outskirts of tow. "Smell of money" they said when the wind pushed the manure smell or the mid-afternoon blood burn smell over the town.) and this was going on 20 years ago, becoming more prevalent asd ethanol burning becomes more and more prevalent and subsidized.
Third, the state of Texas uses the strong and consistent winds of the High Plains in the Panhandle and West Texas to generate power for the entire state. The state of Texas is separated from the rst of the countries electrical grids - there is the Eastern US grid, the Western US grid, and Texas. Texas, starting under Governor GWB, endeavoured to make Texas energy sufficient internally - and wind power was a big part of this. Currently, roughly 15-18% of Texas energy derives from wind power. The turbines the author sees are not running water pumping stations, they are lighting up Dallas, Amarillo, Austin, Houston and San Antonio. This does not diminish the concept that the use of the Ogallala Aquifier to grow corn in a desert is a pretty terrible idea.
Wasn't sure if this qualified as "science" as it is just one person's anecdote.
But it touches on a couple of points:
First, the author brings up the greening of the fields - this is corn, folks. Corn. Water -intensive corn. In the Great American desert, also known as the High Plains. Most likely for ethanol and then feed filler with the depleted material for the feedlots. Destroying the environment to save the environment. SIGH
Second, the author gets a couple of things wrong - cattle do not live in feedlots. Cattle are raised in fields until they are ready to be fattened. THEN they get sent to the feedlots. I lived in Dodge City, KS (home of 2 major packing plants and the US's largest feedlot right on the outskirts of tow. "Smell of money" they said when the wind pushed the manure smell or the mid-afternoon blood burn smell over the town.) and this was going on 20 years ago, becoming more prevalent asd ethanol burning becomes more and more prevalent and subsidized.
Third, the state of Texas uses the strong and consistent winds of the High Plains in the Panhandle and West Texas to generate power for the entire state. The state of Texas is separated from the rst of the countries electrical grids - there is the Eastern US grid, the Western US grid, and Texas. Texas, starting under Governor GWB, endeavoured to make Texas energy sufficient internally - and wind power was a big part of this. Currently, roughly 15-18% of Texas energy derives from wind power. The turbines the author sees are not running water pumping stations, they are lighting up Dallas, Amarillo, Austin, Houston and San Antonio. This does not diminish the concept that the use of the Ogallala Aquifier to grow corn in a desert is a pretty terrible idea.