Drought forecast?

This sounds like it has the makings of a Soviet-class environmental disaster, from one end of the project to another. Seems like since the end of the Cold War, this continent is taking on more and more characteristics of the defeated opponent.

But I fear there is so much money to be made in construction and water sales that a lot of folks will push hard for it, and a big time drought like you mention may just be enough of a trigger to get it going.

R

But, bring on the drought! Yea! I have been drowned out so many times in the past 20 years, it is so disheartening for me to hear rain in the forcast. I'm sick of rain. With a drought, prices go up, I can actually make some money. 1988 was the driest my dad remembered, and he was alive in the 30's. And that was, still to date, my most profitable year. In '03 we had it very dry here, and I had record corn yields - by a big margin.

Again, I know a drought can be devistating to other regions, and even 40 miles from me they farm sand dunes & get burned out about as often as I get flooded out. I tease my wife that I'm the only farmer who frowns when it rains & dances when there is a drought.

Just have to stick up for my own interests once in a while. :) Tired of cleaning mud out of machinery, welding up all the broken stuff, driving cross-ways through my rows, getting the chain & tractor yet again.....

--->Paul

casey in SD

Gov. Rounds and the other upstream gov's met yesterday. Of course, MO's gov couldn't be bothered to show up, but what do they care- they still get plenty of water for "navigation" while we get screwed.

Walleye fishing has been crap for 3 years now thanks to 2 straight years of too much water release during the spawn, more and more boat ramps become unusable every year, and the dollars from the recreation industry are gonna dry up too. And what happens if it stays dry and we start to run out of water for the hydro plants and all the rural water systems that depend on the river? The reservoirs should be filled as a first priority. Anything else should be secondary to keeping water reserves behind the dams.

I'm getting so sick of seeing the river lowered again and again to float some damn barges in Missouri- like their "industry" that can be replaced by trucking and trains is soo much more important than upstream intrests.

Mark

steveormayr