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CapitalPress.com
Friday, July 2, 2021
Drought
As drought deepens, no state
declaration planned in Washington
By DON JENKINS
Capital Press
The Washington Depart-
ment of Ecology has no
plans to move forward
with declaring a drought, as
Eastern Washington bakes
and wheat farmers harvest
smaller crops.
Ecology drought coor-
dinator Jeff Marti acknowl-
edged Friday that dryland
wheat farmers are being
“hammered” by the sec-
ond-driest spring in state
history followed by heat
waves.
A drought declaration,
however, won’t bring water
to non-irrigated farmland,
he said. “I want to make
sure that if we do declare
drought, it is to accomplish
something and be an actual
benefi t.”
Ecology’s
water-sup-
ply committee met June
25 to look at current condi-
tions and summer forecasts.
A large snowpack continues
to melt, fi lling reservoirs that
serve Seattle and Tacoma
residents, and Yakima Valley
irrigation districts.
Meanwhile,
Washing-
ton’s wheat-producing coun-
ties that rely on rain are in an
“extreme drought,” accord-
ing to the U.S. Drought
Monitor.
Wheat farmers in coun-
Trista Crossley/WAWG
AFBF
The Washington wheat industry asked Gov. Jay Inslee to declare a drought emer-
gency, but his administration says it would not be particularly useful.
ties such as Benton, Yakima
and Klickitat are seeing com-
plete crop losses, Washing-
ton Association of Wheat
Growers executive director
Michelle Hennings said.
“Many counties in East-
ern Washington are looking
at below average for their
wheat crop this harvest,” she
said.
By metrics that refl ect
how dry the air and ground
are, some places, such as
Walla Walla and Moses
Lake, already are in “excep-
tional drought,” the worst of
four drought classifi cations.
Assistant State Climatol-
ogist Karin Bumbaco said
in an interview the drought
probably will deepen after
snow melts. “Once streams
drop, I believe the Drought
Monitor will be worse,” she
said.
Washington’s
wheat
industry sent Gov. Jay Ins-
lee a letter in mid-June ask-
ing for a drought declaration.
The groups said a declaration
would help farmers obtain
federal aid.
The Inslee administration
rejected the request June 24
with a letter from Ecology
Director Laura Watson.
Under a drought decla-
ration, Ecology can relieve
water shortages by trans-
ferring irrigation rights or
authorizing
emergency
wells. That won’t help dry-
land farmers who need rain,
Watson wrote.
“For this reason, a state
drought emergency decla-
ration would not be particu-
larly useful for wheat grow-
ers, and we have no plans
to recommend one at this
time,” she stated.
Watson said farmers can
gain relief through crop
insurance or Farm Service
Agency assistance that’s
triggered by federal drought
status.
The Drought Monitor will
qualify wheat farmers for
assistance, though aid also
can be triggered by a gover-
nor declaring an emergency.
Wheat farmers wanted
to make the governor aware
of drought losses, Hennings
said.
The association “thought
it was vital we inform our
state of the current negative
situation our farmers are
experiencing and to inquire
if there is anything that can
be done at the state level,”
she said.
Sheep ranchers face hard decisions during drought
By SIERRA DAWN McCLAIN
Capital Press
Across the water-starved
West, sheep ranchers are
making tough decisions.
Facing withered pas-
tures, climbing hay costs
and scant water, many are
thinning their fl ocks. Others
are thinking of leaving the
industry.
In Southern Oregon,
many pastures are already
parched.
Dee Samson, 65, a long-
time rancher in Oregon’s
Klamath Basin, anticipated
the water shortage and last
year reduced her fl ock of
North Country Cheviots
by 25%. She also planned
ahead by conserving water,
planting new forage com-
binations and preparing to
wean and sell her lambs a
month earlier than usual.
Despite her eff orts, Sam-
son’s farm is hurting.
“We’re
seriously
aff ected,” she said.
Her property lies within
Shasta View Irrigation Dis-
trict, so she has experienced
water cuts.
Samson would like to
continue her operation
another 10 years, but if the
water crisis continues, she
said she doesn’t know how
long she can make it.
Courtesy of Dee Samson
Dee Samson, a sheep rancher in the Klamath Basin of
Oregon, with her North Country Cheviot sheep.
“I’m not very young
anymore and I’m getting
tired of fi ghting for sur-
vival,” she said.
Samson grows alfalfa, so
she will have hay this sum-
mer, but likely only through
second cutting.
The hay shortage is
severe.
According to USDA
hay market price reports,
June 2021 freight-on-board
alfalfa hay prices are up to
50% higher than June of
last year.
Cindy Siemsen, also in
Klamath County, said her
pasture is so dry she hasn’t
stopped feeding supplemen-
tal hay — mostly low-nu-
trient “grain hay” — since
last October. Due to short-
ages in her immediate area,
Siemsen recently had hay
hauled in from Medford,
about a 170-mile round trip.
“It’s been extra expen-
sive,” said Siemsen.
Siemsen said she’s also
worried about drinking
water. Typically marshy
areas of her property are
bone-dry, signaling to her
the aquifer that supplies her
well may be lower.
Paul Lewis, 79, who
raises about 700 White
Dorper breeding ewes in
Bonanza, Ore., said he’s
more fortunate because his
permitted well can still irri-
gate the ground, but he’s
worried about his cattle on
leased land.
Liz Hubbard, another
Bonanza sheep rancher,
said the drought hasn’t
impacted her much yet,
“although we know it will
and are making plans.”
California sheep ranch-
ers, too, are facing severe
drought.
Some ranchers are driv-
ing their sheep to other
states in search of forage.
Ed Anchordoguy, presi-
dent of the California Wool
Growers Association, said
people statewide, including
himself, are cutting fl ock
sizes — “trying to reduce
mouths you have to feed.”
Rebecca King, who runs
a dairy sheep operation in
Santa Cruz County, Calif.,
said she’s culling more
adult ewes to improve her
genetics and cut feed costs
this year.
The silver lining is that
live lamb and meat prices
are strong, with restaurants
coming back and demand
surging. King intends to sell
extra sausage this year.
Andree Soares, who runs
one of California’s largest
targeted grazing operations,
said although she’s worried
about the drought, she’s
more concerned about the
state’s upcoming overtime
wage hike for herders.
“The sheep industry
will make it through this
drought,” she said, “But
we will not make it through
if this wage increase
happens.”
Fairfi eld, Wash., wheat farmer Lonnie Green, right,
shows National Association of Wheat Growers CEO
Chandler Goule, left, and Washington Association of
Wheat Growers executive director Michelle Hennings
how tall wheat is normally during Goule’s visit to the
region in June.
‘Early and fast’ wheat
harvest in Washington
because of drought
By MATTHEW WEAVER
Capital Press
Drought means Wash-
ington’s wheat harvest will
be “early and fast,” indus-
try leaders say.
“They’re not going to
have the bushels to cut
like they do normally,”
said Michelle Hennings,
executive director of the
Washington Association of
Wheat Growers. “It’s not
going to be a bumper crop
by any means. It’s going
to be below average, for
sure.”
Winter wheat yields are
estimated to be 57 bushels
per acre, said Glen Squires,
CEO of the Washington
Grain Commission. Spring
wheat yields are expected
to be lower as well.
The average winter
wheat yield in 2020 was 76
bushels an acre. The aver-
age spring wheat yield was
61 bushels an acre.
“The 2021 crop season
is one of the most challeng-
ing faced by the industry,”
Squires said.
The drought, low soil
moisture, high temperatures
and temperature swings
during development all put
the crop under stress, which
reduces yields, increases
protein levels and aff ects
test weights.
Harvest could be a week
to two weeks early, Hen-
nings said.
“Now that we’re see-
ing 100-degree weather for
over a week, it’s going to
really push the wheat along
quickly,” she said.
The heat will ripen the
wheat faster, Hennings
said.
“The
damage
has
already been done because
of the drought,” she said.
Winter wheat ranges
from OK in certain areas
to crop failures in dry-
land areas, Hennings said.
Spring wheat doesn’t look
good across the state, she
said.
Hennings expects the
harvest to get fully under-
way during the next week.
She said harvest has
likely begun in Benton,
Yakima and Klickitat coun-
ties, the areas where it typi-
cally starts fi rst.
“They don’t have much
of a crop, either,” she said.
“There’s a lot of complete
crop loss over there.”
Nicole Berg, Pater-
son, Wash., wheat farmer
and vice president of the
National Association of
Wheat Growers, uses a
12-inch-tall coat hanger as
a gauge to determine the
height of her wheat. That’s
the height farmers run their
combines, she said.
A crop insurance agent
assessed her wheat would
yield 0.5 bushels per acre.
If wheat is priced at $6.50
per bushel, that means Berg
couldn’t buy a cup of coff ee
at Starbucks off an acre of
wheat, she added.
“It’s just, it’s a drought,”
she said. “Droughts cycle,
weather cycles, we’re in an
extreme drought situation
and now we have extreme
temperatures. It’s been a
wild ride.”
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SPOKANE, Wash. —
Many overseas markets
have a long established
maximum 10.5% protein
specifi cation for soft white
wheat.
This can create a chal-
lenge for handlers and
exporters this year because
drought tends to increase
protein levels in wheat,
said Glen Squires, CEO
of the Washington Grain
Commission.
Some markets may relax
those specifi cations in a
drought year such as this,
he said.
“We are expecting buy-
ers will be able to work with
their suppliers to enable
them to receive wheat that
will meet their needs,”
Squires said.
The grain commission
and U.S. Wheat Associates,
the overseas marketing arm
of the industry, are encour-
aging overseas buyers to
use the solvent retention
capacity test. The test helps
to identify the baking qual-
ity of wheat, Squires said.
The Northwest drought
comes at a time when over-
seas demand for wheat is up.
China entered the soft
white market last year and
purchased over 1 million
metric tons, Squires noted.
This,
coupled
with
increased demand from
South Korea and strong
demand from other regu-
lar customers including the
industry’s top buyer, the
Philippines, means ending
stocks for white wheat are
low, so there is less old crop
lower protein wheat avail-
able for blending.
“We have a reputation for
reliable high quality wheat
and we have several cus-
tomers who are commit-
ted to our soft white wheat
— purchasing regardless of
the price,” Squires said. “We
trust that will continue.”