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March 20, 2019Des Moines, IA |  By: Josh Dillman

Nebraska & Iowa farmers facing unpredictable challenges due to flooding

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds took time to tour areas of western Iowa this week where many communities are struggling to recover from last week's "bomb cyclone," which caused massive flooding and record-breaking levels in 41 rivers. The flooding was caused by rain on already-saturated and still-frozen ground, which overwhelmed drainage systems and caused many levees to breach. Midwest Climate Hub Director Dennis Todey says climate change means farmers are facing unpredictable challenges because such storms are becoming more frequent.

"That is a concern as we go along as to what our springs will look like on a more frequent basis from a flooding perspective and also from a soils' perspective because when you have this kind of overland flow, you're losing a lot of your good soils.  

The Army Corps of Engineers said outflows from Gavins Point Dam on the Missouri River near Yankton, South Dakota are dropping, but flooding downstream won't be over for some time. Several agricultural businesses including Cargill in Council Bluffs and Archer Daniels Midland in Columbus, Nebraska, have never been shut down due to high water.

Todey says the timing of the storm couldn't have been worse since calving season is under way in the Midwest, and stranded cattle without hay could easily die.

"We'll have to wait and see what the overall damage is from a livestock standpoint.  Livestock that are in situations where they're trapped and they can't get anything to them or out."

Between Iowa and Nebraska, nearly 100 counties have declared a state of emergency. At least two people are known to have been killed amidst the storms, and the American Red Cross continues to send disaster-relief volunteers to the area to help those affected by the flooding.