FORT STOCKTON — Zachary Swick plucked a pecan from one of the 78,000 trees at a sprawling West Texas farm — a rare sight in the desert known for oil rigs and pump jacks. He peeled away the pecan’s layers, leaving a stain on his hands that would be difficult to wash off.
One day, Swick said, there might not be any pecans left to peel.
Swick is the farm manager at Belding Farms, which has been owned for decades by the Cockrell family. Each year, the farm produces 5 million pounds of the iconic Texas nut.
The farm sits atop a reservoir of underground water used to produce the pecans since the 1960s. The farm shares the water with its neighbors. Under Texas law, all property owners have the right to use the water underneath their boots.
One of those neighbors is Fort Stockton Holdings, a company established by oil baron and one-time gubernatorial candidate Clayton Williams. Fort Stockton Holdings, for years, has sought to sell its share of the water to West Texas’ growing cities. The 50-year deal between the company and the cities of Midland, Abilene and San Angelo would exchange water from the aquifers for $261 million.
Midland is the capital of the Permian Basin, a 61-county region that holds the state’s vast oil reserves. Over the last decade, Midland has added 10,000 people. About 138,000 people call it home. And more are expected as the oil industry shows no signs of slowing.
“Our goal was to secure a long-term, sustainable water supply that requires minimal treatme