(water running)
[Chris Grotegut] There's always a lot of things happening in the veterinary world.
(clippers)
[Chris Grotegut] This cat today, they want to get it fixed and that's what we're going to do. (music)
[Chris Grotegut] My name is Chris Grotegut. Thanks. I am a veterinarian in Hereford, Texas.
[Chris Grotegut] Going to feel better though. (cat purring)
Yeah, we'll send him home this evening. Will that work? (laughs)
[Chris Grotegut] We're a small shop... (cat meow) ...southwest of Amarillo, Texas.
We're the self-proclaimed cattle-feeding capital of the world. I don't know if
that's true or not. We love the wide-open spaces.
We run a family farm and ranching operation.
Tierra de Esperanza, means land of hope. (wind)
Our deal was hope to make a living. (laughs)
(truck) [Rachel Fern] When people think of this area, they think of vast expanses of dry land.
But the other thing this place is known for are the playa wetlands. (ducks fly)
[Rachel Fern] Tens of millions of waterfowl and other birds that migrate across the United States are
a hundred percent reliant on these playas. They are rain-fed wetlands
that supply the majority of recharge to the Ogallala aquifer, which in turn is the majority
of our agricultural water.
[Chris Grotegut] Across the Great Plains we're extracting more than we're putting back in.
[Rachel Fern] The majority of wells in the Panhandle are declining. That data is publicly available.
[Water District Employee] The water level is 113.85 feet.
[Chris Grotegut] The general trend in the region is down down down down.
Without water, you don't have a community, you don't have a civilization. It's that simple.
[Chris Grotegut] We're probably okay with our protein intake.
So we got really interested in playa lakes, we really got interested in grasslands.
We found out that there's a really good opportunity here to become grass farmers,
and increase our biological diversity. And still have water available for our family and our
livestock and some of our crops.
[Chris Grotegut] In 2010 we started putting these center pivots we irrigate with in grass. And we liked it enough that we just kept doing it.
Removed a lot of our pivots off of our land so we reduced the amount of acres that we're actually
irrigating. We continued to add grass over the years, and at this time we're about 75% in grass,
and we try to have cover on all the ground at all times.
[Rachel Fern] Doctor Grotegut, he's got a really good system. You can actually produce off the land. It's not about
getting rid of agricultural production or leaving or not taking any water at all, but it's about finding that balance.
[Rachel Fern] Dr. Grotegut's land has really started
to respond to the work he has already done.
[Chris Grotegut] Windy day here on the Plains, isn't it?
[Rachel Fern] It's always a windy day on the Plains.
[Chris Grotegut] Getting these dry cycles in the playa basin coming in. Look at these cracks.
You can imagine how much water will flow through that whenever it starts raining again.
If the playa lake has gone through a good dry cycle it improves our chances of catching some recharge water.
It can really absorb that water that goes in those cracks
[Chris Grotegut] Look at those roots going all the way down.
[Chris Grotegut] You can take in a lot of water in a very short period of time heading toward the water table.
[Chris Grotegut] We're basically higher than we were ten years ago on our Ogallala level, which is a big deal, considering the region on average probably
declines a foot a year.
[Chris Grotegut] So, it's really about keeping the land home for people.
[Rachel Fern] While he's kind of a lone voice right now, he's not the only voice.
People want to do what's best for the land and what's best for their families.
And so we hope that that momentum continues.
[Chris Grotegut] By, by. Whoa! In. You're good.
(gate) (sheep)
[Chris Grotegut] I have two sons, they're 14 years old.
[Chris Grotegut] Joseph, put it down.
[Joseph Grotegut] I know. (laughs)
[Chris Grotegut] We need to balance our natural resources so we can be here.
The next generation's going to need to drink also. We're very very lucky to get to be here.
(music) (wind)