Record Drought Punishes Arkansas Agriculture
July 22, 2012
One of the worst-hit drought zones in North America is Arkansas, where lack of rain threatens livestock and crops in almost every corner of the southern state. Farmers are selling off cattle and desperately hoping for a sustained period of rain to undo the damage that has been done.
Arkansas still looks very green. But the grass is short and there is not much good for animal feed.
Even as temperatures soar over 40 degrees Celsius, big white clouds float in the sky.
Occasionally they produce a downpour.
A burst of rain is very welcome here, but experts say it is not enough.
Meteorologists say more than 38 centimeters of slow, steady rain would be needed in some areas to bring them up to normal.
Lack of grass has forced cattle producers like Karen Haralson to spend more on expensive feed, and she says a recent rain has not helped. "It put just a little bit of green in the grass, but all it gave it was color, it didn't give it any growth," she said.
She has had to reduce her herd from more than 250 to around 150, leaving her with too few cattle to operate effectively in the year to come.
"To run the farm, I am going to have to have more cows than I have, so when I go to replace them there will be limited replacement, so the price will be much higher. So it is kind of a vicious circle," she said.
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