From The Pueblo Chieftain (Chris Woodka):
“There needs to be strong incentives to preserve agriculture,” [Mike Bartolo, a small farmer on the Bessemer Ditch] said. That could mean new crops, new ways of sharing water or new uses for crops, such as biofuels, he said…
Using the models, which broadly project effects under uncertain scenarios, Bartolo wants to find out if the crop mix on the Bessemer Ditch could be changed in the future to benefit Pueblo. “We’re looking at what happens when you change the crop mix. For instance, growing canola to make biodiesel for the Pueblo transportation system,” Bartolo said. “We’ve got to have alternatives to prevent buy-and-dry, and look at new partnerships. The city could look at the ag industry as getting a new Vestas plant. It could have that kind of economic impact.”
More Arkansas Basin coverage here.