Front Range farmers bidding for water to grow crops through the coming hot summer and possible drought face new competition from oil and gas drillers.
At Colorado's premier auction for unallocated water this spring, companies that provide water for hydraulic fracturing at well sites were top bidders on supplies once claimed exclusively by farmers. The prospect of tussling with energy industry giants over water leaves some farmers and environmentalists uneasy.
"What impact to our environment and our agricultural heritage are Coloradans willing to stomach for drilling and fracking?" said Gary Wockner, director of the Save the Poudre Coalition — devoted to protecting the Cache la Poudre River.
"Farm water grows crops, but it also often supports wildlife, wetlands and streamflows back to our rivers. Most drilling and fracking water is lost from the hydrological cycle forever," Wockner said. "Any transfer of water from rivers and farms to drilling and fracking will negatively impact Colorado's environment and wildlife."



The Trump administration sued two California cities on Monday, seeking to block local laws that restrict...
Mudslides buried cars and homes up to their windows in a California mountain town as a...
6.5 magnitude earthquake shook the Mexican state of Guerrero in the southern part of the country...
Republicans are attempting to exempt some major polluters from paying for Pfas “forever chemical” cleanup. If...





























