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Holy Crop: How federal dollars are financing the water crisis in the West
The federal subsidies that prop up cotton farming in Arizona are just one of myriad ways policymakers have refused to reshape laws to reflect water shortages throughout the Colorado River Basin states.
Water trauma: Apprehensive farmers could face radical shortages
The Colorado River may see a shortage as soon as next year, and the probability of one in 2017 jumps to 61 percent. If Lake Mead’s water level drops below 1,075 feet, agricultural users of Central Arizona Project water will see a big cut.
Growth industry: Native American farms reclaim heritage, expand operations
Agriculture was big business long before the first Spanish conquistador, Franciscan friar or American wagon train reached the Valley of the Sun. Centuries of canal-building, first by the Huhugam, followed by their descendents the Akimel O'odham people (also known as Pimas) and their Pee-Posh, or Maricopa, neighbors, brought life-giving water from the Gila, Salt and other local rivers to fertile[...]
