By Rainy Adkins Farmers across the San Luis Valley who maintain fields with center-pivot sprinklers and sun-faded tractors wake up every morning with a view of blue mountains and a hard job, and they love it despite the consequences it might have on the environment. “Farming’s in their blood,” said Riley Kern, the fix-it-all technician…
By Rachel Colchete To farmers in Colorado’s San Luis Valley, potato farming is more than a way to sustain their lives, it is their way of life. But as a growing water crisis tightens its grasp around the valley, workers in the agriculture industry wrestle with how to stop the draining of their aquifers while…
By Rainy Adkins In the barren expanse of the windswept San Luis Valley bordered by snow-powdered blue peaks, groundwater water is a major source of concern for the farming community as the valley becomes more arid and crops continue to demand water. “There’s no way you’ll stay in business,” people have told Sheldon Rockey, 3rd…
By Lili Weir Potato farmers facing a shift to aridity in the San Luis Valley are turning to alternative agricultural practices to sustain themselves in a changing environment. “We’re committed to making it work,” Rio Grande Water Conservation District general manager Cleave Simpson said in a recent interview. A fourth generation farmer, Simpson said he…
By Auguste Voss SAN LUIS VALLEY—A sign along the main north-south road where drivers whiz through Colorado’s golden-brown San Luis Valley reflects rising political concerns about climate change impacts—which increasingly threaten the agriculture that remains the economic mainstay for people. “Our home needs our care,” the sign says, showing a blue-green planet earth. But farmers…
By Mitchell Adams SALIDA— Proudly gazing through a window at the five fourteen thousand-foot peaks he can see from his log-cabin-chic living room, homeowner Jerry Mallett explained why he chose to build his dream home in a forest fire zone. “My wife wanted a view,” Mallett said with a grin. “We had to roll the…
By Johnna Geick CENTER – Nestled between the Sangre de Cristo and San Juan mountains, Colorado’s San Luis Valley is a place of peace. But in the serenity, farmers are struggling to survive economically while keeping their family traditions alive. They’re facing a water crisis. Climate impacts on mountain snowpack along the headwaters of the…
By Mitchell Adams ALAMOSA— For farmers in the San Luis Valley, farming is more than work. It is their life. “It’s what we do,” said Cleave Simpson, the general manager of the Rio Grande Water Conservation District. “People have been here for eight to nine generations doing the same thing.” Agriculture is the largest industry…
By Carly Valerious ALAMOSA— Living in The San Luis Valley entails facing major climate change impacts, but residents display optimistic attitudes and a desire to help the valley. Farmers are pressing ahead with potato crops in a water crunch. To cope with climate change, residents of Crestone are turning to meditation to calm their anxious…
By: Olivia Dicks Changes in climate and the effort to reduce industrial emissions of greenhouse gasses are beginning to create significant uncertainties for power plant workers and those who use electricity in Colorado Springs. “The industry has basically flipped on its head,” according to Ian Gavin, the plant manager at the coal-fired Martin Drake Power…
