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Aquifer and Agriculture
The vast but relatively shallow Ogallala Aquifer lies beneath the Great Plains, under portions of eight states. Its thickness ranges from a few feet to more than a thousand feet. The Ogallala yields about 30 percent of the nation's groundwater used for irrigation in agriculture, and provides drinking water for most of the people within the area. But for many years more water has been extracted from the Ogallala than has been returned, and the situation today is of great concern.
Examples of aquifer in a Sentence
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Those issues are particularly critical in West Texas, where declining aquifers, little rainfall and abundant hydraulic fracking, which is water intensive, threaten the water supply.
—
Sarah Bahari, Dallas Morning News, 5 Jan. 2026
Others worry that wells and aquifers could run dry.
—Marc Levy, Los Angeles Times, 3 Jan. 2026
Think beyond sustainable to restorative: water systems that replenish aquifers while serving communities, energy projects that heal landscapes while powering neighborhoods, or health innovations that strengthen both individual and collective immunity.
—Jason Phillips, USA Today, 10 Dec. 2025
Lion Oil and Great Lakes Chemical, a nearby chemical plant, worked together to reuse 2 million gallons of wastewater each day instead of using aquifer water, an effort that earned the two companies the 2002 Corporate Conservationists of the Year Award from the Arkansas Wildlife Federation.
—Arkansas Online, 6 Dec. 2025
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Sarah Bahari, Dallas Morning News, 5 Jan. 2026
Others worry that wells and aquifers could run dry.
—Marc Levy, Los Angeles Times, 3 Jan. 2026
Think beyond sustainable to restorative: water systems that replenish aquifers while serving communities, energy projects that heal landscapes while powering neighborhoods, or health innovations that strengthen both individual and collective immunity.
—Jason Phillips, USA Today, 10 Dec. 2025
Lion Oil and Great Lakes Chemical, a nearby chemical plant, worked together to reuse 2 million gallons of wastewater each day instead of using aquifer water, an effort that earned the two companies the 2002 Corporate Conservationists of the Year Award from the Arkansas Wildlife Federation.
—Arkansas Online, 6 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for aquifer
Cite this Entry
“Aquifer.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/aquifer. Accessed 7 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
aquifer
noun
aqui·fer
ˈak-wə-fər 
ˈäk-
: a water-bearing layer of rock, sand, or gravel capable of absorbing water
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