8. Water Rights Reflection Practically every aspect of our lives is influenced in one way or another by fresh water. It’s a precious resource that can be abundant in certain places and at certain times, but one that can also be fatally scarce. Certain plants and animals have evolved over time to be able to withstand periods of prolonged drought. Humans, however, have not developed these adaptations and require fresh water on a daily basis for survival. Demands on local and global water supplies continue to increase in the face of excessive consumption and population growth resulting in water shortages and difficulty in accessing fresh, clean, water to meet human needs. The legendary oilman, T. Boon Pickens, whose name you might recognize from the recent announcement of his plan to install wind turbines throughout the Great Plains in an effort to make America less dependent on foreign oil, thinks he has a solution. His plan is to pipe water from an ancient aquifer beneath Texas to thirsty cities such as Dallas, a plan that is not without controversy. Learn more about his proposal and the controversy surrounding it by reading the article from BuisnessWeek entitled There Will Be Water (posted on ANGEL). For your reflection, consider the following: Should a single person or entity have rights to water that flows beneath common ground such that they are able to capture and divert the water to sell for a profit? Why or why not? In what ways might a project such as this impact the local residents? In what ways might a project like this impact the local wildlife? If his plan is rejected, what are some alternative solutions to the water shortages for residents in cities such as Dallas? Is there potential for a situation like this to arise in Florida? Explain.

On a moral scale, no certain person owns that land, or the water that flows beneath it. It belongs to the Earth, and it is there for us to use. Now, in todays society, that would not fly. In reality, that long belongs to an individual, and that individual can dictate what they want to do with the resources that are on that land. I do not believe it is morally right for one to claim the water as theirs, and claim it as profit, but in the grand scheme of things today, it is not wrong to do so if one owns the land. The local residents could not benefit from that aquifer. What if the local area started running dry? would they pipe water in from a different area? This could create a dominoe effect crippling various areas until there is nothign left. Water restrictions are not nearly as strict as they should be. Possibly imposing stricter rules on water usage, and increasing the penalties for breaking them would convince some people to actually follow them. As well, there are always opportunities to cut back on usage. There certainly is potential for this to happen in florida. What if we damage the flow of the aquifers, and an area would no longer be recieveing fresh water? they would have to do the same thing as this person is imposing.