Worst Drought Since the Dust Bowl

brianlux

No doubt we'll be hearing more about this in coming weeks:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/john-w-bo ... 85797.html

Worst Drought Since the Dust Bowl

"July 15: 102 degrees. Corn and everything is mostly discussed . . . It is really too hot, dry, discouraging and devilish to do anything. . ."

"July 21: I have seen a good many bad years in this country . . . but I never saw any worse than this one. Corn is practically all destroyed now, pastures are as bare as January."


Nebraska farmer Don Hartwell wrote these despairing words in 1936. It was the darkest hour of the twin tortures of the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl, as author Timothy Egan noted in his book, The Worst Hard Time.

Now, the long dry season of 2012 has struck American farmers with a drought that threatens to surpass those "devilish" times. Once again the effects of extreme weather conditions are compounded by a hurting economy.

Corn crops are suffering. Many farmers will not produce the yields they have in past production years. And too many will not survive to plant another crop. Minority-owned farms, usually the most precarious in their operations, will be especially hard hit.

Most farmers rely on farm subsidies or federal crop insurance to cover crop losses. Many black farmers and other small producers cannot afford federal crop insurance premiums. They are just too expensive.

The least financially secure farmers are faced with the bottom line just like any other business: "Do I purchase federal crop insurance or do I purchase the high-cost corn and soybean seeds to plant my crops?" I can tell you from personal experience that farmers like me will purchase the seed every time.

This year's drought seems to be different than those of the past. Many states have experienced record numbers of 100-plus degree temperatures for weeks at a time. No crop can withstand such temperatures without rain.

Some states like Wisconsin have not had a drop of rain for 55 days. So even if it rains today, most of the crop damage is already done. When corn begins to make (meaning that the ear of corn begins to form), water is absolutely required, whether from rain or irrigation.

What does this mean for the average consumer? It means higher food prices in the grocery store. Corn is used in so many products from corn syrup to breakfast cereal, and industrial products. This prolonged arid spell will affect fruits and vegetables as well.

On a national scale we are faced with an estimated $100 billion in losses which means another blow to our already weak economy.

For me this year's drought is personal. Dry pastures, loss of hay, livestock suffering in the heat -- these are some of the hardships on my farm. And we face the certainty that corn and soybean production will be greatly reduced.

At the same time, there is opportunity amidst these disastrous times. Here is a chance for food superpowers such as Monsanto and other food industry giants who are clearly thriving off the backs of American farmers to give back and support those who have made their companies successful.

We also will need the support of state and federal governments to do their part.

We all can learn something from this drought. That is that no matter how much technological advancement we have made, no matter how far we think we have progressed, we are always at the mercy of nature.

We still can't make it rain.

brianlux

Another related article. This one from Bill McKibben published in Rolling Stone is too long to reproduce so I'll just post the link. If you can find time, it's worth reading:

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/ne ... h-20120719

know1

It might be the worst since then, but that one was far, far worse and exacerbated by ill conceived farming practices.

Jason P

know1 wrote:

It might be the worst since then, but that one was far, far worse and exacerbated by ill conceived farming practices.

:?:

Which one had ill-conceived farming practices?

riotgrl

Jason P wrote:

know1 wrote:

It might be the worst since then, but that one was far, far worse and exacerbated by ill conceived farming practices.

:?:

Which one had ill-conceived farming practices?

the 1930s Dust Bowl did not used good farming practices to protect the soil from wind erosion. No use of cover crops, crop rotation, etc. to protect the prairies then coupled with the severe drought it was a disaster. Al happening at the same time as the Great Depression...

Sorry know1, hope I didn't step on your toes with my answer. And JasonP, I hope that's what you were asking about.

polaris_x

modern industrial farming has contributed to this as well

riotgrl

polaris_x wrote:

modern industrial farming has contributed to this as well

I am almost at the point where I think our modern industrial ag. is far worse than what happened to ag. in the 1930s. The use of factory farms and the runoff waste from those farms in nauseating! We have so polluted our land and water especially along the Mississippi River and down to the Gulf that I don't know that anything will help repair that area anytime in the near future :(

polaris_x

riotgrl wrote:

I am almost at the point where I think our modern industrial ag. is far worse than what happened to ag. in the 1930s. The use of factory farms and the runoff waste from those farms in nauseating! We have so polluted our land and water especially along the Mississippi River and down to the Gulf that I don't know that anything will help repair that area anytime in the near future :(

ya ... growing things that don't grow there ... depleting the soil to the point where crazy amounts of fertilizer is required ... producing shittier food ... bankrupting farmers ... utilizing mass amounts of resources like water and energy ...

i can't believe people think that bioengineering and industrialized farming is saving us ... :(

g under p

Here in South Florida we have nothing but rain heavy rain everyday it seems. Finally, no rain in sight for the next 3 days...our lake is about crest it's banks if the rain continues.

Odd how one part of the country can have plenty of rain and in central and out west hardly any rain. I hope the farmers will be able to survive this drought.

peace

riotgrl

g under p wrote:

Here in South Florida we have nothing but rain heavy rain everyday it seems. Finally, no rain in sight for the next 3 days...our lake is about crest it's banks if the rain continues.

Odd how one part of the country can have plenty of rain and in central and out west hardly any rain. I hope the farmers will be able to survive this drought.

peace

I live in KY and we just got a bit of rain in the past couple of days but so many of our crops have just withered and died - especially corn. Pretty sure our farmers are screwed this year :(

know1

riotgrl wrote:

Jason P wrote:

know1 wrote:

It might be the worst since then, but that one was far, far worse and exacerbated by ill conceived farming practices.

:?:

Which one had ill-conceived farming practices?

the 1930s Dust Bowl did not used good farming practices to protect the soil from wind erosion. No use of cover crops, crop rotation, etc. to protect the prairies then coupled with the severe drought it was a disaster. Al happening at the same time as the Great Depression...

Sorry know1, hope I didn't step on your toes with my answer. And JasonP, I hope that's what you were asking about.

No worries. That's exactly what I was referring to and you said it better than I could.

know1

riotgrl wrote:

g under p wrote:

Here in South Florida we have nothing but rain heavy rain everyday it seems. Finally, no rain in sight for the next 3 days...our lake is about crest it's banks if the rain continues.

Odd how one part of the country can have plenty of rain and in central and out west hardly any rain. I hope the farmers will be able to survive this drought.

peace

I live in KY and we just got a bit of rain in the past couple of days but so many of our crops have just withered and died - especially corn. Pretty sure our farmers are screwed this year :(

In KY as well and haven't mowed my lawn for over a month. Some of the grass actually went from brown to blackish...

Jason P

polaris_x wrote:

riotgrl wrote:

I am almost at the point where I think our modern industrial ag. is far worse than what happened to ag. in the 1930s. The use of factory farms and the runoff waste from those farms in nauseating! We have so polluted our land and water especially along the Mississippi River and down to the Gulf that I don't know that anything will help repair that area anytime in the near future :(

ya ... growing things that don't grow there ... depleting the soil to the point where crazy amounts of fertilizer is required ... producing shittier food ... bankrupting farmers ... utilizing mass amounts of resources like water and energy ...

i can't believe people think that bioengineering and industrialized farming is saving us ... :(

It prevents mass starvation. It increases yields. It takes away risk. If the entire world had enough money to shop at Whole Foods, maybe we could revert to the days of using donkeys to till the fields.

This drought alone has already sent soybeans and corn to record highs and we won't even see the real impact until this winter. If it were not for the improved seed and equipment, it would be an outright mega disaster right now.

Livestocks are already being thinned due to the impact of high feed prices. If you have a big freezer, start buying beef and pork in bulk right now. You will thank me in six months.

polaris_x

Jason P wrote:

It prevents mass starvation. It increases yields. It takes away risk. If the entire world had enough money to shop at Whole Foods, maybe we could revert to the days of using donkeys to till the fields.

This drought alone has already sent soybeans and corn to record highs and we won't even see the real impact until this winter. If it were not for the improved seed and equipment, it would be an outright mega disaster right now.

Livestocks are already being thinned due to the impact of high feed prices. If you have a big freezer, start buying beef and pork in bulk right now. You will thank me in six months.

:fp:

sorry ... i'm not really keen on arguing against a monsanto PR piece ... nothing you said is true ... nothing ...

edit: sorry ... nothing in your first 3 sentences ... the part about raising the price is definitely true ...

polaris_x

for those interested ... i highly recommend reading raj patel's stuff on food systems ...

ComeToTX

brianlux wrote:

Another related article. This one from Bill McKibben published in Rolling Stone is too long to reproduce so I'll just post the link. If you can find time, it's worth reading:

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/ne ... h-20120719

I only made it halfway through before I was too scared to go on.

ComeToTX

g under p wrote:

Here in South Florida we have nothing but rain heavy rain everyday it seems. Finally, no rain in sight for the next 3 days...our lake is about crest it's banks if the rain continues.

Odd how one part of the country can have plenty of rain and in central and out west hardly any rain. I hope the farmers will be able to survive this drought.

peace

This is basically one of the definitions of climate change. Extremes one way or the other. Our lake here in Austin is drying up. We should receive a little over 30 inches of rain here each year. We've had a little over 30 the last 2.5 years. We did get a little relief last week but it could get dire if our lakes keep drying.

riotgrl

know1 wrote:

riotgrl wrote:

g under p wrote:

Here in South Florida we have nothing but rain heavy rain everyday it seems. Finally, no rain in sight for the next 3 days...our lake is about crest it's banks if the rain continues.

Odd how one part of the country can have plenty of rain and in central and out west hardly any rain. I hope the farmers will be able to survive this drought.

peace

I live in KY and we just got a bit of rain in the past couple of days but so many of our crops have just withered and died - especially corn. Pretty sure our farmers are screwed this year :(

In KY as well and haven't mowed my lawn for over a month. Some of the grass actually went from brown to blackish...

Yes we've only mowed once in the past 3 weeks. I'm in Louisville, where are you in KY? We had a bit of a storm last night and it blew the roof off the Crowne Plaza by the airport. Talk about weather extremes :(

riotgrl

Jason P wrote:

polaris_x wrote:

riotgrl wrote:

I am almost at the point where I think our modern industrial ag. is far worse than what happened to ag. in the 1930s. The use of factory farms and the runoff waste from those farms in nauseating! We have so polluted our land and water especially along the Mississippi River and down to the Gulf that I don't know that anything will help repair that area anytime in the near future :(

ya ... growing things that don't grow there ... depleting the soil to the point where crazy amounts of fertilizer is required ... producing shittier food ... bankrupting farmers ... utilizing mass amounts of resources like water and energy ...

i can't believe people think that bioengineering and industrialized farming is saving us ... :(

It prevents mass starvation. It increases yields. It takes away risk. If the entire world had enough money to shop at Whole Foods, maybe we could revert to the days of using donkeys to till the fields.

This drought alone has already sent soybeans and corn to record highs and we won't even see the real impact until this winter. If it were not for the improved seed and equipment, it would be an outright mega disaster right now.

Livestocks are already being thinned due to the impact of high feed prices. If you have a big freezer, start buying beef and pork in bulk right now. You will thank me in six months.

It could also be argued that the loss of crop biodiversity in favor of a mono-crop system is one factor that has contributed to our current food woes.

brianlux

Regarding modern farming practices- this is one that has and will be debated almost endlessly but nothing I've read or heard has convinced me in the slightest that the proliferation of GMO's or chemicals dumped into the soil or aquifers being drained or mono cropping tasteless product (as opposed to produce) is a good idea. We're changing the genetics of our food. These changes are seeping their way into wild species, and probably changing our own genetics. This is mad science.

Our crops are beginning to taste like fake food. Home grown food from small mixed plots is always better. Sure, we're very clover at growing 10,000 acre plots of GMO corn that can be changed into almost anything but so what? That not food for people- that's food for cattle or maybe even robots.

Will our clever science give us ways to adapt to climate change? Maybe, but I doubt it. Doesn't taking a closer look at natural cycles, eating locally grown healthy food, decreasing our pumping of CO2 and taking better care of the world we live in make more sense?

This drought, the hottest down poor on record at 109 degrees in Mecca , the the 327th consecutive month in which the temperature of the entire globe exceeded the 20th-century average, the multitude of strange weather related events are all warning signs from nature. Are we listening?

polaris_x

the yields are misleading ... when you look at it holistically - it doesn't make sense ...