By Joyce Morrison, Illinois Agri-Women
I received an email from friends who are farmers in South Dakota telling me that much of their area has been flooded, and where it isn’t flooding, rains have prevented planting. While crops look good in Jersey County, in a brief moment this could change with the erratic weather patterns. It has been a tragic year for farmers across the nation.
The rampage of the Missouri River and releasing of water from the reservoirs has destroyed thousands of acres of farmland and reports are not good.
A conservative estimated loss of $85.2 million, the blasting of the Bird’s Point levee in Southeast Missouri flood water inundating over 130,000 acres of rich farmland to save the town of Cairo, remains controversial. Pictures show huge gouges in the fields that will take years to heal. The Wetlands Initiative and other groups are anxious to see the Bird’s Point farms made into a “River Park” while SIU professors and others have advocated it become a huge wetland. Neither option is welcome by farmers who own this property. This land has been farmed for over 100 years and is known for its high productivity.