TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — In an effort to conserve water, some farms in our area are having their water supply cut.
"You know there are a lot of farmers that having a really hard time right now," Gordon Buchanan, the farm manager at the San Xavier Co-up, said. "They are losing about half their staff. A lot of them going out of business now. This is pretty big."
Buchanan's farm will not be impacted by the cuts because it is located on a reservation.
"For the size that we are right now, if we had to cut back and everything it would essentially probably shut us down or it would be hard to overcome," Buchanan said.
The San Xavier Co-op grows alfalfa as a cash crop and is already seeing an increase in demand for it. Many farmers will no longer be able to grow the crop because of the water needed. Alfalfa is often used to feed livestock and he expects that need to be even greater than before.
Buchanan said that the water cuts will have an impact beyond the farm.
"I mean It's going to affect markets from all the way around from milk to dairy to beef," Buchanan said. "Pretty much all the markets are going to be affected by this."
Farmers will now have to turn to groundwater to help make up the water that will be cut.
----
STAY IN TOUCH WITH US ANYTIME, ANYWHERE
- Download our free app for Roku, FireTV, AppleTV, Alexa, and mobile devices.
- Sign up for daily newsletters emailed to you
- Like us on Facebook
- Follow us on Instagram
- Follow us on Twitter
