With three-quarters of Arizona’s fresh water supply going to farmlands, the recent reductions imposed on Colorado River supply are having a huge impact on agriculture in the state. “It’s all about stretching that water dollar or that gallon of water a little bit further.” Paul “Paco” Ollerton is a third-generation farmer in Casa Grande, who says he’d already been squeezing every last drop for his fields.
About three-fourths of Arizona’s water supply goes to agriculture, and policy makers say the state needs to address that fact as it confronts a shrinking Colorado River.
That’s why a University of Arizona program is helping farmers use water more efficiently.
Farming is in 30-year-old Jace Miller’s blood.
“I love my job, it’s the greatest way of life,” Miller said. “It’s the best profession in the world, in my opinion.”
His great great grandfather came to Arizona in 1917 and started a farm in Gilbert. Four generations later, Jace is still doing it. But that 100-year run is at risk of ending — Triple M Farms, named for the three Miller generations that work there today — is losing access to its most important resource: water.
The Water News Network is San Diego County’s source for water news and information.
