Water Conservation Policy Alternatives for the Ogallala Aquifer in the Texas Panhandle

The continued decline in the availability of water from the Ogallala Aquifer has led to an increased interest in conservation policies designed to extend the life of the aquifer to sustain rural economies in the Texas Panhandle. This study evaluates the effectiveness of five policies in terms of changes in the saturated thickness of the aquifer as well as the impact each policy has on crop mix, water use per acre, and the net present value of farm profits over a sixty-year planning horizon for the region