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Half of U.S. Area Is in Drought; as Obama Ag Incompetence Ruins Farmers and Cities Alike
19 May 2013
(EIRNS)—As of May, 48% of the area of the U.S. contiguous states is in drought, down from 67% last Fall, but many areas are in more severe condition that ever before. Details were presented May 16, at the annual "Summer Drought Outlook" event, hosted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The National Integrated Drought Information System foresees no grounds for expecting significant drought relief in the immediate future. Select spots on the national drought map have improved in recent months, thanks to Hurricane Isaac going up the central states, and by rain in the Southeast, and a few other incidents, but dryness remains extensive. A few points are summarized below.
In stark contrast, the first-of-the-season crop forecast, issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture on May 10, foresees good weather, good crops and good yields ahead. The USDA World Agriculture Supply and Demand Estimate (WASDE) monthly report is a sick joke to farmers. Look at the USDA’s track record: The May 2012 USDA report foresaw 376 million metric tons of corn in 2012, which turned out to be 274 mmt. DROUGHT IMPACTS. Of the 17 western states in the Bureau of Reclamation purview, 11 are in drought, with as much as 98% of their land area involved. The Rio Grande Basin has reservoirs at an all time low, for example, Amistad Lake. The stream-flow patterns show zero in many places. The Lower Rio Grande valley is a crisis region. In Texas, the Drought Preparedness Council is rushing to deal with local drinking water emergencies. The state comes in, when a town (big or small) has only 180 days of drinking water left. There were 20 cases in 2011. The next year, 27; and now they are mounting. Recently, Wichita Falls was a big scare, because of its nearly 100,000 population. FARMING, RANCHING. Farm and ranch spokesmen from western Kansas and western Nebraska addressed the NOAA event, making the point that they know how to take care of dry land—with the right methods of grazing, fallowing and other practices, to maintain ground cover and protect the soil—but they are being ruined and driven off the land by prevailing economic policies. They need Federal help and aren’t getting it. "It’s dire and scary," said a rancher from the Sandhills in western Nebraska. His county has only 550 people. The ranchers have "de-stocked" all they can, that is, sold off all but their genetic stock (those specially bred up, over time), so now they face ruin, without aid. (mgm) |
