Lawrence Journal-World 09-28-14

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WEIS, JAYHAWKS SHUT OUT Texas rolls to 23-0 victory as Kansas offense sputters. SPORTS, 1B

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SUNDAY • SEPTEMBER 28 • 2014

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WE WERE WARNED

Chad Lawhorn clawhorn@ljworld.com

Flippers, scanners fit right in at beloved book sale Shutterstock image

Ogallala Aquifer water continues to pour onto our farm fields despite decades of dire forecasts By Karen Dillon Twitter: @karensdillon

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ore than two years ago, Gov. Sam Brownback and the Kansas Legislature thought they had found a way to help save the ever diminishing and endangered Ogallala Aquifer, a massive underground water supply that has helped make Kansas one of the nation’s top agricultural states. The Legislature, with Brownback’s strong support, allowed farmers to form groups that could require deep reductions in irrigation. The hope was that if enough Western Kansas farmers pared their water use by at least 20 percent, the aquifer’s lifespan could be extended. Brownback, who grew up on a farm, explained that without Ogallala water, roughly twothirds of the state’s agricultural

Sunny

Kansas isn’t alone in its plight. To its south, Oklahoma is struggling, and in Texas, entire towns are going dry. But Nebraska, to the north, took a tougher stance; it passed laws in the 1970s, and today its aquifer is being sustained in many places and is actually being recharged in some. and related businesses could be harmed. “It is essential that we help protect, extend and conserve the life of the Ogallala Aquifer for future generations of Kansans,” he said at the time. But two years later, only one Please see AQUIFER, page 6A

High: 83

Low: 56

Today’s forecast, page 8B

Please see LIBRARY, page 2A

More sales

Map courtesy of Michigan State University, with permission of Anthony Kendall, Bruno Basso and David Hyndman

Significant portions of the Ogallala Aquifer are at risk of drying up. From pre-irrigation, roughly before the 1950s, to 2012, the aquifer saw a decline equivalent to the volume of water in Lake Erie.

INSIDE Arts&Entertainment 1C-6C Events listings Books 4C Horoscope Classified 1D-10D Movies Deaths 2A Opinion

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ou never know what you will find at the Friends of the Lawrence Public Library book sale. Here I am strolling down one of the many aisles on the opening day of the sale, and I find on a shelf the answer to all my yard problems: “The Grass is Always Greener over the Septic Tank.” Or on another shelf I find what surely will come in handy in today’s international world: The Concise Oxford Spanish Dictionary. It was 4 inches thick. I’m holding out until my semitruck arrives, and I’ll buy the unconcise version. (I’m sure, by the way, I eventually will find “unconcise” listed as an actual word in the very unconcise versions of English dictionaries.) And then sometimes you are really shocked by what you find: “The Best of the Best from Missouri.” I had no idea the publishing industry experimented

2B, 6C Puzzles 9D Sports 2C Television 9A

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6C, 9D 1B-8B 2B, 6C

U.S. House race

In a departure from past practice, the Friends of the Lawrence Public Library will have multiple book sales this fall. Sales are scheduled for Oct. 30 through Nov. 1 and again on Nov. 28-29, which are the two days after Thanksgiving.

Vol.156/No.271 44 pages

Lawrence Democrat Margie Wakefield is challenging U.S. Rep. Lynn Jenkins for a seat in Congress. Profiles, 3A

A PLACE TO PLAY. A PLACE TO GATHER.

GRAND OPENING

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2014 | 2-4 P.M. | 100 ROCK CHALK LANE SPORTS AND FITNESS DEMONSTRATIONS LIVE MUSIC HEALTHY / NUTRITIOUS FOOD FACILITY TOURS FUN FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY


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