Blunt tries to get Missouri farmers a water break ... or at least a financial break
By Charles Minnick

According to a press release, Governor Matt Blunt said that the USDA’s Farm Service Agency, coupled with federal grants and tax relief, were not enough to assist Missouri’s farmers.

Missouri’s condition has digressed since the governor activated the Drought Assessment Committee in mid-July due to fears of crop devastation from the dry conditions. Since then, much of Missouri has incurred rain deficits in excess of eight inches and two heat waves of triple-digit temperatures. Falling soil moisture, crop growth, and pond and stream levels have caused the number of drought stricken counties to rise to 112 Missouri’s 114 counties.

Few of Missouri’s farms have avoided the effects of the arid summer. Paul Black, a CAFNR student, lives in the particularly hard hit Dallas County.

“The hay crop was about half what it was last year, but we have good streams so water wasn’t a problem. I mean the streams were dry but there were places for the livestock to find water,” said Black.

The USDA has established some aid for the counties with losses exceeding 30 percent in at least one crop by making those affected farmers eligible for low-interest loans.

In the press release, the governor said, “The magnitude of this drought exceeds the help low-interest loans can provide. Missouri farmers are the backbone of our state’s economy and this natural disaster has adversely impacted them in the same way that hurricanes, tornadoes and earthquakes impact other businesses.”

The governor’s request for more aid may fall on deaf ears as it comes on the eve of new budget votes. According to the Associated Press, this year’s budget votes plan to cut $35 billion dollars from programs and the Senate agriculture committee is among those trying to trim from the budget, planning to reduce farm price supports by $2.4 billion through 2010.

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