Dan Gordon at the Denver Post reported yesterday that farmers in southeastern Colorado are selling off their water rights to companies and investors. This is a trend that has been occurring in the West for a few decades. As urban populations grow, municipalities, investors, and corporations have been buying off water rights from neighboring farmers and ranchers. This means that productive farmland is converted either into dry crop land, left barren, or developed into commercial or residential uses.
This phenomenon raises concerns about suburban sprawl, food scarcity, and water speculation.
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