Tagged: drought

Several companies that operate barges on the drought-stricken Mississippi River have asked Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear to intervene by calling for a presidential disaster declaration.

The companies, including three based in Paducah, say such a request could be a first step in getting the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to release water from the Missouri River to improve the flow of theMississippi.

The companies made the appeal in a Dec. 20 letter.

Last night, the second part of Ken Burns' latest documentary premiered on PBS. "The Dust Bowl" tells the story of the people who farmed the Great Plains in the 1920s and 1930s; many stayed on once the ground dried up and dust storms became commonplace, while others moved west to find work.

The drought last summer will reduce corn and soybean harvests in Kentucky, but not to the degree once feared. That’s the assessment of state Agriculture Commissioner James Comer.

"Yields are a little better than what we thought they were going to be, which says a lot about technology about the corn seed, because there are a lot of those counties, in Fulton County and Calloway County, that didn’t’ get any rain in May, June or July but they still yieled something. So, that was encouraging," Comer said during a visit to Frenchburg this week.

The drought that’s been plaguing areas of Kentucky and Indiana for much of the summer could end up having an effect on honeybee colonies, too.

Sean Burgess is Kentucky’s state apiarist. He says this time of year is critical for bee colonies, because it’s when they harvest nectar to make the honey that nourishes them through the winter.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has designated another 68 Kentucky counties, including Jefferson, as drought disaster areas.

With the new drought declaration, Bell, Harlan, Leslie and Perry counties are the only Kentucky counties not officially in a drought. These counties are all clustered in the southeast part of the state.

University of Kentucky meteorologist Matt Dixon says the drought has been months in the making.