Appropriation and water rights issues in the high plains Ogallala region

White, Stephen E.; Kromm, David E.

doi:10.1016/s0362-3319(96)90016-6

Cited by 9 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 10 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…They also generally opposed special exemptions that permit new wells to benefit the public interest in fully appropriated areas. White and Kromm (1996) concluded that if irrigators' preferences were codified in the groundwater appropriation doctrines, more groundwater could be conserved. Recently, Sophocleous (2012) has suggested similar and additional measures to extend the life of the Ogallala/High Plains aquifer (summarized later on in this article), in addition to the recommendations made earlier (Sophocleous 2005, 2010).…”

Section: Irrigators' Preferencesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Retracted: Conserving and Extending the Useful Life of the Largest Aquifer in North America: The Future of the High Plains/Ogallala Aquifer

Sophocleous

2012

Groundwater

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The water‐level decline of the High Plains/Ogallala aquifer is one of the largest water management concerns in the United States. The economy and livelihood of people living in that vast region depend almost exclusively on water extracted from that aquifer. A debate about its future is ongoing, and questions remain as to how best to conserve the groundwater resource. Maintaining the aquifer will require reductions in pumping and irrigated hectarage and adopting additional conservation measures. Eventually, the agricultural system will have to be based dominantly on the renewable water resources of the region. In effect, this means a limited‐irrigation and/or dry‐farming regime. What Kansas is currently doing to further extend the life of the aquifer is presented here together with additional measures that could be taken. A key management approach to help sustain the aquifer in western Kansas is to divide the aquifer into subunits on which to base localized management decisions. Another recently adopted measure is the establishment of local enhanced management areas, which would allow locally agreed upon specific corrective controls in those areas. History has shown that incentive and voluntary plans alone have not been successful in halting water‐level declines. Thus, limits and timelines need to be set and checks must be in place to enforce strict administration of conservation measures. It is advocated that water laws be reformed and modernized so that “water rights” are constrained by the current availability of water and the preservation of the resource base for future generations.

show abstract

Section: Irrigators' Preferencesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Retracted: Conserving and Extending the Useful Life of the Largest Aquifer in North America: The Future of the High Plains/Ogallala Aquifer

Sophocleous

2012

Groundwater

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In response to these "problems," various policies have been proposed. These range from deprivatization and abandonment to triage approaches that focus resources on needy communities that have a reasonable probability of long-term survival with assistance; from growth-pole strategies at a microscale to growth-pole approaches at the metropolitan scale; and from grass-roots self-help efforts to service sharing among communities (Daniels 1989;White 1992).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Ogallala Oases: Water Use, Population Redistribution, and Policy Implications in the High Plains of Western Kansas, 1980–1990

White

1994

Annals of the Association of American Geographers

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Contrary to recent literature that portrays the High Plains as an over‐exploited region of economic and demographic decline and as place that should be deprivatized, abandoned, and resotred to a buffalo commons, this study suggests that the irrigated Ogallala region is not dying. It is experiencing, instead, a major redistribution of population into nucleated Ogallala oases sustained by the presence of ample groundwater for irrigation. Although more remote rural areas with irrigated agriculture are losing population, they endure nonetheless as important components of the cultural landscape in their role as hinterlands for the Ogallala oases. This paper examines the relationship between proximity to groundwater use and population change in the Ogallala aquifer region of Kansas during the 1980s. The analysis focuses on three levels; the county, incorporated and census designated places, and rural census county subdivisions. The association between proximity to groundwater and population change is statistically significant among counties, among places larger than 500 inhabitants, and among more densely‐populated rural areas. Groundwater use is not associated, however, with population change in places with fewer than 500 people or in sparsely‐populated rural census county subdivisions. These patterns of population change are not merely reflections of historical inertia. They are better explained by active responses to the advantages of agglomeration and access to groundwater than to the passive unfolding of past patterns of population redistribution. In this context, a triage‐type development policy that favors Ogallala oases larger than 500 inhabitants seems a more appropriate response to regional problems than the alternatives of growth poles, service sharing strategies, outright abandonment, or laissez‐faire.

show abstract

“…Rogers includes accountability and responsiveness in the list of traits for water governance; ultimately, roles must be defined so that accountability and responsiveness can be assessed. In a survey of users from the High Plains Aquifer, individuals reporting a lack of trust in the governance authority were more likely to resist change . Additionally, water rights must be clearly defined or stewardship is unlikely .…”

Section: Synthesismentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, literature suggests when users have some autonomy over the resource, they are more likely to perceive benefits from regulation and these measures are more likely to succeed . Greater conservation has resulted from local communities having influence on groundwater policy . Moreover, a lack of local community engagement is associated with opposition and rejection of policies which change the status quo .…”

Section: Synthesismentioning

confidence: 99%

A dual‐continua framework for assessing water use models and the potential for conservation

Czarnecki

Omer

Kröger³

2015

WIREs Water

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Regions vary in their supply of and access to ground and surface waters. These two issues together have substantial influence on the pressures and drivers of water conservation adoption (i.e., necessity vs voluntary adoption). A framework for water use models is proposed where regions are evaluated on two continua, infrastructure (engineered and political) and freshwater supply (physical and usable). Eight illustrative regions are placed into four quadrants based on waterrelated infrastructure and supply. Regions in quadrant I experience both ample water supply and adequate infrastructure to still be operating with conservation as a 'luxury.' Regions falling within quadrants II and IV experience a shortage of either supply (II) or infrastructure (IV) but adequate levels of the opposite factor. Regions falling within quadrant III bear the double burden of limited supply and infrastructure. Shifts in quadrants are examined as a function of movement along infrastructure and supply axes. This study seeks to answer (1) for a region with both ample supply and sufficient access to freshwater, what are the mechanisms by which the situation will degrade; (2) for regions lacking either supply or infrastructure (or both) what are the mechanisms by which the situation can be improved; and (3) how do regions maintain status in preferred quadrants?

show abstract

Appropriation and water rights issues in the high plains Ogallala region

Cited by 9 publications

References 10 publications

Retracted: Conserving and Extending the Useful Life of the Largest Aquifer in North America: The Future of the High Plains/Ogallala Aquifer

Retracted: Conserving and Extending the Useful Life of the Largest Aquifer in North America: The Future of the High Plains/Ogallala Aquifer

Ogallala Oases: Water Use, Population Redistribution, and Policy Implications in the High Plains of Western Kansas, 1980–1990

A dual‐continua framework for assessing water use models and the potential for conservation

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About