US Drought 2011 Rivals the Dust Bowl
July 12, 2011, Submitted by: Ken Tweet
credit: The New York Times
25 Percent of the U.S. is suffering under a severe drought that some say will rival that of the ‘Dust Bowl’. The drought conditions began during 2010 and continue to worsen into the summer months of 2011.
The states that are affected the worst are Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Louisiana, and Georgia, followed by parts of Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, South Carolina, and North Carolina.
According to The New York Times, last month, the United States Department of Agriculture designated all 254 counties in Texas natural disaster areas, qualifying them for varying levels of federal relief. More than 30 percent of the state’s wheat fields might be lost, adding pressure to a crop in short supply globally.
“Even if weather patterns shift and relief-giving rain comes, losses will surely head past $3 billion in Texas alone, state agricultural officials said. ”
The most widely accepted reason for the severe drought is a weather phenomenon called ‘La Nina’ which has shut off the southern conduit of moisture. ‘La Nina’ is an abnormal cooling of waters in the Pacific Ocean.
The New York Times:
Economists say that adding up the effects of drought is far more complicated than, say, those of a hurricane or tornado, which destroy structures that have set values. With drought, a shattered wheat or corn crop is a loss to one farmer, and it has a specific price tag. But all those individual losses punch a hole in the food supply and drive prices up. That is good news for a farmer who manages to get a crop in. The final net costs down the line are thus dispersed, and mostly passed along.
That means grocery shoppers will feel the effects of the drought at the dinner table, where the cost of staples like meat and bread will most likely rise.
All this is further reason to plan ahead and assure yourself a supply of extra food storage. At the very least, you will have paid less for your food in the long run, all the while having a food ‘safety net’, just in case…
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And don’t forget Texas also has to deal with the out of control wild hog population, which can destroy crop fields overnight!
On top of the fact that there is not that much arable land to farm on to begin with. Drought ruins crops unless you can find water and bring it in to irrigate the fields. People are just totally unaware of just how little land and little water there is that you can grow food on this planet.
Please leave the alarmist stuff to Al Gore and his cronies.
The current drought is mild compared to the weather that triggered the Dust Bowl.
I live in one of the drought stricken states. It is extreme, here. Our water table has dropped dramatically. Some wells are running dry. I personally can’t remember a drier summer. I don’t think any of this is “alarmist” reporting. There are comparisons being made all over the place. I think people’s minds are being drawn to the comparisons of the drought, the unemployment level, and the economic crisis, all of which were excruciating during the 30′s. I would venture to say that we are on the cusp of experiencing that level of pain, once more.
Just my opinion.
I have followed this water issue for decades. It comes up as an aside of tracking weather, jet-stream,ozone,El and La Nina cycles, and so on. The Arizona water table had dropped hundreds of feet by the 70″s. The same true with most all south west states. @”R. of Ha…”It would befit all of us if the things you post where slightly more clear. On one hand you talk of “Gore” in the brilliant light of His true nature, ( Sarcasm! ) and then you Talk as if you had an inkling of knowledge regarding “The Dust Bowl”. From reading your uninformed spew for some time now, I want all of the clan to know that here is either a plant for the use of the site to subjugate your mind with miss-information: or just a person or people under the alias who have NO clue!… And I Stand By That By Way Of Life Experience!!! Get off this site or Educate yourself in the need to avoid semantics in this venue… Sorry All… You know the love I have for this forum and it’s Hosts… @ A/Merlin and all who Know: and even those who have not yet gotten the drift of where” We” are being lead… Dia Dhuit… God Speed in the changes that are forth coming. Survive-All… Prepare be aware…
I’m in the UK and we here are also on various drought warnings. Many farmers aren’t allowed to take river water for their crops at the moment and so unless we have significant rainfall soon and for several weeks, the harvest will be poor.
I dabble in growing food. I have never had to water it before – it really is quite a chore!
Assuming that there is a poor harvest in the USA and also Europe, yes, of course food prices will go up. But how long would it take before food shortages become a worry? What capacity do other continents have to export extra food to us should we need it? And did I read something about Russia keeping all of their grain to themselves?
I’m sure that the rain will come next year, but if it doesn’t, well, it does make you wonder. On a global scale!
The big fear is that perfect storm; failed crops in major farming zones around the world, world population doubling in 40 years, longer supply lines and smaller storehouses of food, etc. Any one of these could be serious but all of them together would be a disaster of biblical proportions.
Here is a realistic view on the current drought compared to previous droughts:
http://icecap.us/index.php/go/joes-blog/the_texas_centered_drought_versus_1918_1956_and_1934/