Rt.66 Ethanol Plant

Submitted by grassfarmer:

A recent review of the web site for the Office of the State Engineer show an application for water from the Rt. 66 Ethanol Plant. The request for ground water is 800 ac. ft. per year from a well the old plant used.

There are a number of paths that the OSE says must be followed when pumping from a declared water basin, in this case the Tucumcari Basin. It will be interesting to watch the development of this permit request to see if the different regulations are followed. There is no doubt in my mind that the permit will be approved. Do you think the OSE would approve a permit for 800 ac. ft. of water to be pumped from the Entrada Aquifer for a local farmer? Maybe if pigs fly!
Of course, agriculture in the Tucumcari area is not on a high priority for economic development. Ethanol will be the big agriculture plus for this area, just as it was in the past. We will see if ethanol is a sustainable agricultural endeavor. Most of the product will be trucked in. Most of the by-product will be trucked out. Most of the ethanol will be trucked out. So where do the local farmers get a cut of this windfall? Trading in their tractors for trucks?
Maybe if the racetrack is approved and built, the ethanol by-product can be fed to the racehorses? Some say a big feedlot will move into the area. Maybe it can use the waste water from the ethanol plant and also the by-product. Then the farmers would get the manure to put on their fields and the increased soil fertility would be a plus for all. That’s all!