Lon Frahm
Energy & Environment
Energy & Environment contains the interviews of individuals who were involved with the development and implementation of state energy and environmental policy from the 1970s through the early decades of the 2000s. The interviews elicit insights about the policy-making process, the assignment of priorities, and the give-and-take involved in reaching final policy decisions. Of special interest are instances in which Kansas developed singular solutions and means for implementing them. To explore this collection and others, visit the Kansas Oral History Project home page: https://ksoralhistory.org/
Lon Frahm is a sixth generation farmer in Thomas County Kansas where he owns and manages a farming operation of 36,000 acres primarily of dryland and irrigated corn. He pioneered large-scale, no-till farming along with other conservation practices. Lon holds bachelor's degrees in Business and Agriculture as well as a Master of Agribusiness degree from Kansas State University. Maintaining his family's tradition of public service, Lon was a long-time Board President of the Northwest Kansas Groundwater Management District #4 in Colby, Kansas. In addition, he is past Chairman of Midwest Energy in Hays, where he continues (as of 2020) to serve on the Board. He also serves on the Board at Citizens Medical Center in Colby, on the Kansas Arts Commission, the Kansas Humanities Council, the Kansas Water Authority, and the Kansas Geological Survey Advisory Board at the University of Kansas.
In this 2020 oral history interview, Lon Frahm describes his involvement in groundwater policy development as a member of Northwest Groundwater Management District No. 4. During the 1990s, he challenged the zero-depletion policy (to take only the amount of water that will be naturally replenished). Frahm supported local control of water management. He observed that over the years control over water planning has shifted to state-level water agencies, particularly the Kansas Water Office, that are not “invested personally” in managing water in northwest Kansas. In his view, state Water Plan funding has resulted in spending that does not help farmers and other local interests. Frahm cites the importance of local culture in setting water policy using as an example the Local Enhanced Management District (LEMA) in Sheridan County. He notes that the success of that endeavor grew out of the shared values of the farmers and a local market for grain. Frahm argues that changes in water use will be very slow over time, and water use should not be held back because we cannot predict the future.
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