Storms on U.S. Plains stir memories of the "Dust Bowl"

[Omaha Steve]

Source: REUTERS

By Kevin Murphy

LIBERAL, Kansas (Reuters) - Real estate agent Mark Faulkner recalls a day in early November when he was putting up a sign near Ulysses, Kansas, in 60-miles-per-hour winds that blew up blinding dust clouds.

"There were places you could not see, it was blowing so hard," Faulkner said.

Residents of the Great Plains over the last year or so have experienced storms reminiscent of the 1930s Dust Bowl. Experts say the new storms have been brought on by a combination of historic drought, a dwindling Ogallala Aquifer underground water supply, climate change and government farm programs.

Nearly 62 percent of the United States was gripped by drought, as of December 25, and "exceptional" drought enveloped parts of Kansas, Colorado, Oklahoma, Texas, and New Mexico, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.

FULL story at link.



Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/storms-u-plains-stir-memories-dust-bowl-141625464.html?ugc_c=qQp6_Jr12QCgIh8Xumk5w7k_jcBunu6zi2z7MbkLWCYet6gfBq0_H.o1pR_xosQZNid3Cdn8MRDPYfSRmxQ25jiyq7CnoYPXO2bUuJfoz1BDUKEi5ibyhncTRQ5bOhfNk1hdwk0vukxLD6svZ2sGEzRXAeTFrPfi9uUp0XCLDV0vDB0Gv7D4P3szhvLLWzQAxG9Ag88x409.9Rtvjnp4V8Ygw2OMMAY7ZIL5IQDa40Jh7N3TLRtekSqZziiKhcvszgqPFMSe&bcnv_s=e&ugc_scnv=1&ll=2

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http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/2UIn7c_XYkwLH_XpzNywQw--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9aW5zZXQ7aD0zMzg7cT03OTt3PTQ1MA--/

Farmer Gail Wright is pictured next to a water pump which he says he is likely to shut down because the Ogallala Aquifer no longer provides adequate water near Sublette, Kansas, November 26, 2012. Residents of the Great Plains over the last year or so have experienced storms reminiscent of the 1930s Dust Bowl. Experts say the new storms have been brought on by a combination of historic drought, a dwindling Ogallala Aquifer underground water supply, climate change and government farm programs. Picture taken November 26. REUTERS/Kevin Murphy

Thanks to retired liberal Hollywood actor David Macklin for sending this story my way.

[TheBlackAdder]

1. Kansas: How's that hydraulic fracking working for you?

http://kansas.sierraclub.org/Fracking/Fracking-PowerPoint-2012-0304.pdf

[no_hypocrisy]

2. And how much of the soil is laid to waste by not

rotating crops by Agribusiness?

[Cha]

3. Thanks for the article, Steve..

I use to live out on those Plains in Colorado back in the late 50s and earlly 60s. Tumbleweeds!

Hope they get it together to deal with the historic droughts in a responsible way.

[MuseRider]

4. Living in NE Kansas

out in the boonies I was seeing dust clouds, not anything like the dust bowl but the dust would blow in and hang in the air for days. You can be darned certain the big Agrobusiness is not doing no till farming or even trying to save this from happening again.

Almost the entire state of Kansas was in the extreme drought by the end of the summer. It has eased in a few places. Where I am it is still extreme and this will be the third year if it continues. Out west it has been going on longer. I am surprised we have not seen these storms starting up worse than this.

Honestly, things worked out well for this state when we stayed with what grows here naturally...great grass. So great that the cattle from the south were brought here to be fattened up. We did not have to tear up the ground, you do not have to fertilize native prairie and it does OK in a moderate drought and will return after a bad one. We had a great way to earn our keep and keep Kansas naturally protected from many of the things that have made it difficult since we tore it up for wheat.

[NickB79]

5. Forget sea level rises. The most damage from climate change will be due to this

Loss of cropland will be devastating over the next few decades.

[triplepoint]

6. All Things Connect...

“Humankind has not woven the web of life. We are but one thread within it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves. All things are bound together. All things connect."

--Chief Seattle
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[handmade34]

7. ... and this...

(so many saw these problems coming and nothing significant has been done... so sad)


"Barge companies fear Mississippi River shutdown because of water levels"
http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/27/us/mississippi-river-traffic/index.html

"...A historic drought and excessive heat reduced water levels and scorched wide sections of the Midwest. Flooding last year may have worsened the situation on the Mississippi by leaving deposits of silt and debris in areas that would normally be clear.
...the portion of the river near Thebes -- about 125 miles south of St. Louis -- may be impassable for many vessels around January 3 or 4... "This potential supply-chain disruption could amount to a staggering loss for the U.S. economy, affecting nearly 20,000 jobs," said the statement from the American Waterways Operators and the Waterways Council, Inc....

[bananas]

8. Dust-Bowlification

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2011/10/26/353997/romm/2011/04/07/207853/usgs-dust-bowl-storms-southwest/

Nature Publishes My Piece on Dust-Bowlification and the Grave Threat It Poses to Food Security

By Joe Romm on Oct 26, 2011 at 4:50 pm

“Feeding some 9 billion people by mid-century in the face of a rapidly worsening climate may well be the greatest challenge the human race has ever faced.”

<snip>

I was particularly delighted that Overpeck liked the term “Dust-Bowlification.” He really was an inspiration for me to begin studying this topic many years ago when I saw a 2005 presentation of his, “Warm climate abrupt change–paleo-perspectives,” that concluded “climate change seldom occurs gradually” (see The “global-change-type drought” and the future of extreme weather).

I am equally delighted Nature has basically endorsed this term through its multiple appearances in this article and felt that the overall issue warranted more attention.

<snip>

[dipsydoodle]

10. Dorothea Lange's Migrant Mother' photographs of Florence Thompson and her children

always come to mind whenever the dust bowl is mentioned.

[dipsydoodle]

11. Overall the dustbowl wasn't caused by drought

it was man made as is climate change.

[dipsydoodle]

9. Timely reminder

I couldn't be bothered top watch the documentary on PBS here in the UK and bought Ken Burns - The Dust Bowl DVD which I have yet to watch. Aside from running my daughter around tonight I'm staying in and will watch the whole lot.

Happy New year to you.