20
Jun 2008
Mississippi Flood 2008 and The Effects
Posted in Nature, Thoughts by Ang. at 7:56 am |
Today the waters are creeping into our county. According to some folks at our softball game, as of last night the water had taken over our “Field of Dreams” softball field know as Rockford. I have not driven down to the bottoms yet to see how things look for myself. Normally today is the day that I drive to Keokuk for groceries. However, we are going to drive over tomorrow so that Tom can navigate the temporary road. I just don’t feel real comfortable driving over it myself. Call me a weenie if you like. I am curious to see first hand how high the river had gotten by the bridge.
Today there are more reports of levees breaking south of us. That means more homes and more farmland being swallowed up by the water. I am terribly concerned for our economy. The loss of so many acres of farmland this season will have far reaching effects. Do people realize this? I really don’t think they do. An acre of corn produces around 90 bushels and an acre of soybeans produces 50 bushels. I have no idea how many acres of farm land has been lost this season but it is an enormous number. In our area alone, we have lost at least 40,000 acres to the flood. Let’s just say that the corn to soybean ratio of those acres is 3 to 1. So 30,000 acres of corn and 10,0000 acres of soybeans. Are you with me so far? That means a loss of 2,700,000 bushels of corn and 50,000 bushels of soybeans that will not be harvested in my area. Remember that is only in my immediate area. Now, let’s think about what products come from corn and soybeans. Corn is responsible for products like cereal, chips, anything with corn syrup in it, feed for cattle, hogs and chickens, ethanol additive for our gas, plastics, corn oil, de-icing products, packing peanuts and the list of hundreds of products goes on. Soybeans become products like bio-diesel, oil, ink, feed for cattle, hogs and chickens, cleaners, plastics, adhesives and again the list goes on. Can you see how the loss of so many acres is going to affect every aspect of life? The prices of beans and corn have already skyrocketed and I am sure they will continue to do so for a while. Folks, it is time to tighten your belts and cancel your vacation plans. Seriously. The effects of this flood are far reaching and you all will feel them. This really has been weighing heavy on my mind so I guess I needed to let it out.
Everything is going up in price. Cat food(the cheapest brand )has gone up $3 a bag, on a 20 lb bag. Kitten formula is almost $10 a container. I'm already spending $80-$90 a month on cat food and another $40-$50 on kitten formula. I don't even want to think about food prices!!!People are going to be really hurting, very soon even more than they are now. There are people here in this motel with nothing to eat tonite. I only had one meal today so I could share my food with one family, but they are not alone. There are more every day going without even the basics.
CM
It is good to see you putting two and two together here in America. Have you been keeping up with it world wide? Do to storms and flooding the world has lost it's rice crops not just for this year but many since it will take years to restore the freash water paddies swallowed by salt water. I hear the horsemen and they are getting closer.
