Book

Ashworth, William, 1942-

Ogallala blue : water and life on the High Plains / William Ashworth.

1st ed.

New York : W.W. Norton & Co., ©2006.

x, 330 pages : map ; 24 cm

"In this narrative, William Ashworth tells the history of the Ogallala, from its formation after the retreat of the glaciers to its uncertain future. The most dramatic part of that history deals with efforts to exploit the hidden waters, starting with the primitive wells of long-vanished tribes, through the invention of the center-pivot sprinkler, and on to ever more sophisticated extraction technologies. This is an account of people as well as water, with many vignettes of those living in the shadow of the Ogallala's decline."--Jacket.

Irrigation water -- High Plains (U.S.) -- History.

Irrigation -- High Plains (U.S.) -- History.

Agriculture -- High Plains (U.S.) -- History.

Agricultural ecology -- High Plains (U.S.) -- History.

Ogallala Aquifer -- History.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 289-309) and index.

Prologue : the palisaded plain -- The underground ocean -- The phantom reservoir -- The flattest land -- Pumping Kansas dry -- Declining fortunes -- A state of nature -- Don't drink the water -- Too important to stop -- Paper water -- To determine their destiny -- The ghosts of ancient rivers -- Peering at the edge -- To dig a hole -- Holocene -- "Wholly unfit for cultivation" -- Finding the water -- Circles on the plain -- Apocalypse delayed -- Minimum water -- Adaptation -- The opportunity to be efficient -- Making every bit count -- A tenuous balance -- An elephant in a dark room -- Roberts County rancher -- Drowning Texas Tech -- The long farewell -- Epilogue : The buffalo spring.

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