[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 72 (Thursday, June 8, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5654-S5655]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
AGRICULTURE DISASTERS IN SOUTH DAKOTA
Mr. JOHNSON. Mr. President, extreme weather conditions pounded much
of South Dakota in 2005, leaving nearly 60 out of the State's 66
counties eligible for Federal disaster aid. Many family farmers and
ranchers have had little reprieve from the previous year of harsh
weather conditions, as blizzards and drought have already hampered the
2006 production year. On top of natural disasters, low commodity prices
and skyrocketing energy costs are forcing producers to make tough
decisions in order to keep their operations afloat. I believe we can do
more to help ease the burdens that our producers bear, and I want to
draw the Senate's attention to a handful of South Dakota counties
devastated by natural disaster in 2005 and into 2006.
In 2005, 59 South Dakota counties were included in Presidential or
Secretarial emergency declarations as either primary or contiguous
disaster counties. These counties experienced natural disasters such as
drought, high winds, extreme heat, flash flooding, hail, prairie fires,
spring frost, severe storms, and blizzards.
For example, 2005 marked the fourth consecutive year of experiencing
drought conditions in central South Dakota, including Hand, Hughes,
Hyde, Stanley, and Sully counties. Inadequate snowfall, meager spring
rains, high temperatures, and desolating winds led to sparse pastures
and a lack of forage crops necessary for feeding livestock. Without
adequate precipitation, producers were forced to reduce the size of
their livestock herds. Of the 57,500 acres planted or growing in
Stanley County, losses ranged from 35 to 70 percent. In Sully County,
50 to 70 percent of 280,075 acres planted or growing were lost due to
drought conditions. Hyde County's corn, soybean, and sunflower crops
experienced yield losses ranging from 50 to 80 percent.
In southern South Dakota, Charles Mix County experienced much of the
same drought conditions. While drought typically wreaks havoc on an
area over an extended period of time, one day of particularly extreme
temperatures and strong winds on top of severe drought can devastate
already struggling crops. On July 23, 2005, the temperature reached 114
degrees Fahrenheit with 45-mile-per-hour winds. These conditions led to
a 60 percent loss of corn yields, 50 percent loss of soybean yields,
and 30 to 35 percent of yield losses in sorghum, alfalfa, mixed forage,
and grass. Neighboring county, Hutchinson County, experienced 100
percent loss of prevented corn and soybean yields and 50 percent loss
of corn and soybean yields.
We are now in the middle of the 2006 production season and Farm
Service Agencies, FSA, in parts of the State report conditions edging
toward severe drought and fear that without adequate precipitation
soon, many counties will be faced yet again with another difficult year
of production. Livestock producers are increasing supplemental feeding
early this year due to poor pasture conditions and lack of water in
dams and dugouts. Farmers are left with very little to work with, as
both the topsoil and subsoil lack the necessary moisture to produce
operation-sustaining crops. This cycle of drought conditions has
created a new element of synergism in the agriculture industry,
compounding year upon year of devastating effects not only on
producers' pocketbooks, on livestock and land conditions.
Campbell County, in north-central South Dakota, is one among many
counties experiencing drought again this year. Entering into its fourth
year of drought conditions, with only 1.54 inches of rainfall to date
for 2006, Campbell County is currently 63 percent below the normal
precipitation for the area. Today, many water sources are dry due to
below normal snowfall during the winter months yielding no runoff, and
below normal rainfall this spring. In addition to drought, frost has
forced producers to shorten grazing time on native pastures and native
and tame greases.
In central South Dakota, drought is rearing its ugly head for the
fourth and fifth consecutive years. Hand County is experiencing yet
another extremely dry year, with approximately 330 livestock producers
affected and an estimated $210,000 needed in Emergency Conservation
Program, ECP, funds to correct the damage. In Lyman County, winter and
spring wheat yields will likely yield zero to 40 percent of normal. Row
crops, which were planted into dry ground, are not germinating and will
likely fail unless adequate precipitation is received soon. While most
livestock producers in these areas have not liquidated as of yet,
should these conditions persist, they will be forced to sell their
entire herd.
On the opposite end of the spectrum is Clay County, which experienced
a series of heavy rains, flooding, hail, and frost in 2005. Much of the
alfalfa affected by the excessive rain incurred a significant quality
loss, because most of the first cutting was not able to be marketed as
dairy-quality hay. The majority of producers affected suffered a 20 to
40 percent of yield losses, while 100 to 125 producers experienced
greater than 30 percent in losses. Of those with greater loss, some
producers received assistance from the FSA Farm Loan Division in order
to keep their farm in operation.
Counties throughout the State have also been impacted by frost or
freezing temperatures. Haakon County, in western South Dakota, had
frost hit winter wheat and alfalfa crops in March of 2005, only to
experience freezing temperatures two months later. Eighty percent of
yield losses affected the 15,800 acres of alfalfa and 10 to 20 percent
of winter wheat yields were lost. Among other counties affected by
frost or freezing temperatures were Brown, Gregory, McPherson, Hyde,
Potter, Brookings, Perkins, Clay, and Sully.
Dealing with winter storms is certainly not new to South Dakotans.
However, from time to time the combination of unusually high winds,
freezing rain, and large snow accumulation results in the temporary
paralysis of communities and agriculture operations. Not only did
severe winter weather in 2005 and the spring of 2006 take a toll on
livestock, but many producers were without electricity for days and
even weeks. Producers' pocketbooks took an extra hit because of the
high fuel costs it took to run generators around the clock.
[[Page S5655]]
From November 27 through November 29, 2005, severe winter storms
swept through much of eastern South Dakota. President Bush declared 42
primary and contiguous counties as emergency designations. In Hamlin
and Deuel Counties, 30 percent of producers' alfalfa and winter wheat
were lost in that particular blizzard.
Western South Dakota was hit with severe blizzard conditions on April
18 and 19, 2006, dropping as much as 24 inches of snow. Harding, Meade,
Haakon, and Butte counties were among those hardest hit by the spring
blizzard, with the total estimate of livestock losses at approximately
11,732. Harding County experienced the worst losses. According to the
Harding County FSA office, 60 of the 300 producers contacted reported
losses totaling 2,500 cows and calves and 6,000 sheep. For one producer
in northwest Harding County, about one-third of his herd died when
between 450 and 500 of his sheep piled up against a fence and
suffocated. Butte County also sustained significant losses to their
livestock herd.
I briefly described the agricultural conditions South Dakota's family
farmers and ranchers have faced over the last year and a half. The
counties I described are merely a snapshot of the reality that our
producers experience following a natural disaster. In some cases,
disasters are limited to portions of one county, while other disasters
span large parts of the state, affecting all producers.
Every farmer or rancher knows that each production year is a gamble
with Mother Nature. Unfortunately, all too often most producers at some
point lose this gamble and suffer the devastating effects of a natural
disaster. I understand the financial and emotional hardships that this
places on many family operations' struggle to survive. Because
agriculture is the driving force behind South Dakota's economy, it is
crucial that producers receive the resources necessary to recover from
their losses.
In response to the many natural disasters that producers throughout
the country have suffered, Senator Kent Conrad and I introduced the
Emergency Agricultural Disaster Assistance Act of 2006 on March 16,
2006. Our relief package would provide emergency production loss and
economic assistance to agricultural producers for losses sustained
during the 2005 production year. Assistance for crop production losses,
livestock assistance, supplemental nutrition, and economic disaster
assistance to aid with rapidly-increasing production input costs are
included in our bill. In addition, a number of provisions in the bill
address agricultural recovery in the areas affected by Hurricane
Katrina.
Senators Kent Conrad, Byron Dorgan and I worked to fold our stand-
alone bill into the larger spending bill, the Emergency Supplemental
Appropriations Act, H.R. 4939. On May 4, 2006, the Senate passed the
$109 billion emergency funding package, of which $3.9 billion would be
used for agriculture disaster relief. As a negotiator in the conference
consideration of the bill, I fought to secure meaningful disaster aid
for producers. However, House leadership demonstrated their priorities,
leaving America's family farmers and ranchers out to dry yet again. The
conference report that was presented to the committee contained only
money for Hurricane Katrina-related agriculture disaster--not a penny
was included to provide relief for the flooding and drought conditions
that have plagued so many of our producers in 2005.
While this administration insists that the 2005 crop year was
outstanding, if not a record-breaking year, the disaster situations I
just described indicate otherwise. This agreement was a raw deal for
our producers and a raw deal for our rural communities.
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