Farmers' water supplies are also being cut by the government and appear to be redirected to the cobalt mining efforts that require massive amounts of water. Authorities claim that the purpose is to end our dependence on "fossil fuels", which is a pipe dream because our electrical grid would not be able to provide enough electricity to cover the elimination of gas and oil. The mine is expected to produce 2,000 pounds of cobalt per year, that represents 10% of US demand for new batteries. Critics believe that the manufactured water shortage denying water to 500,000 acres of farmland will affect food production and is a depopulation program.