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Drought.
Thirsty Land, Thirsty Bodies. |
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Greetings!
Drought, as most are familiar, is caused by lack of rain over a long period of time. And, if rain does occur, it usually isn't enough for the ground to absorb before it is evaporated again.
Plants, animals and people need water to survive. If there is not enough available, there is a risk of dying of thirst and dehydration. Water is one of the main ingredients in the food chain. If a plant dies from lack of water then the animal that eats that plant will also die, the cycle will then continue to die out.
Most droughts tend to occur during summer, as the weather is hot and water is quickly evaporated. Droughts can last for years in most extreme cases. These types of droughts affect outback properties and can devastate crops and livestock and play into the devastation of man.
Relative, when the human body doesn't have enough water, it begins to experience mild dehydration symptoms, such as fatigue, headaches, feeling irritable or anxious, constipation and other digestive disorders, and not sleeping well.
When dehydration continues, the body learns to adapt with a drought management program. However, sooner or later the ill effects will begin to appear in the body in the form of pain and inflammation.
Whether land or man, drought is devastating. Addressing the issue of drought, TACT purposes to draw attention to the importance of water not only as a substance of sustenance, but as a resource that is irreplaceable.
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TACT - Dedicated Insurance Professionals you know and trust...like Family.
Sincerely,
Stoney Jackson
Executive Director
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agriculture News
TACT Acknowledges National Ag Day
Thursday, March 8 marked National Ag Day for 2012. Ag Day is a day set aside to celebrate and recognize the abundance provided by agriculture. Producers, corporations, associations and the like join to recognize the contributions of agriculture.
As the agriculture industry takes center stage during National Agriculture Week, Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples asked Texans to join him in honoring the state's hardworking farmers and ranchers for making Texas a powerhouse of productivity.
"Our producers are responsible for the most abundant, most affordable and safest food supply in the world," Staples said. "The Texas agriculture industry employs one in seven working Texans and brings more than $100 billion a year to the economy of our great state. I ask all Texans to take time to celebrate and thank our farmers and ranchers by buying Texas-grown and raised products, and choosing those with the GO TEXAN brand."
American farmers are more productive and efficient than ever before. According to the Texas Farm Bureau, each producer today feeds 155 people in the U.S. and abroad. In Texas, about 1.8 million people work in agriculture-related jobs, ranging from journalism and advertising to commodity trading.
"Many of us take our readily accessible and safe food supply for granted, which is a testament to the high standards and strong work ethic of those who work in our agriculture industry," Staples said. "National Ag Week is an occasion to recognize those who contribute so much to the health, well-being and prosperity of this country."
For a list of local farmers markets, Texas products and information about the GO TEXAN Program, visit the Texas Department of Agriculture website at www.TexasAgriculture.gov.
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Dry, Thirsty Land
2011 Texas Drought
Having Lasting Effects
Texas climatologists have recently stated that the 2011 drought is an ongoing dry spell - the worst one-year drought since Texas rainfall data started being recorded in 1895. The majority of the state has earned the highest rating of "exceptional" drought and the remaining areas are not far behind with "extreme" or "severe" ratings by the U.S. Drought Monitor.
 Streams throughout Texas ran well below normal and reservoirs ran at 50 percent of capacity. Even with recent rainfall bringing these depletions to near capacity, for farmers and ranchers who depend on Mother Nature to provide water for their livestock and crops, this lack of water has been crippling. Agricultural losses have already mounted to a record 5.2 billion.
Texas has suffered through mega-droughts in the past, so how does 2011 compare? With less than six inches of rain from January 2011 to August 2011 and a 13 inch rainfall deficit since August 2010, this measured period of dryness is unprecedented in recorded Texas history, significantly below the previous minimum readings in the 115-year record.
However, the drought is not unprecedented in every way, and much longer droughts have occurred in the past. The worst extended drought remains the massive 1950's event when Texas suffered under drought conditions for 10 years from the late 1940's until the late 1950's. In the 1918 case, severe dryness began in 1917 and peaked in 1918 before rebounding to wetter than normal conditions. As the current drought has only been ongoing for the past 6-12 months, it can only be described as the most acute in Texas history.
Though what will happen with individual droughts cannot be predicted, information indicates drought risk in Texas going forward. The record shows that 10-year droughts are possible. Going back even further in time, climate data from tree rings shows that in the past, Texas has suffered through droughts that are measured in multiple decades.
What is known from the past climate record, how the trend fits with our physical understanding of climate change, and what climate models project for the future, is strong evidence of an increase in drought risk that must be managed to avoid increasing costs to citizens, communities, and businesses of the Lone Star state.
From beef prices to the cost of a pair of socks, the Texas drought of 2011 will leave its mark on family budgets. "This drought is just strangling our agricultural economy," says professor Travis Miller, of Texas A&M University's Department of Soil and Crop Sciences.
Losses, so far, are estimated at $5 billion. Texas lost a little over half of its cotton crop as parched fields brought back memories and statistics not seen since the great dust bowl of 1933. Texas produces 55% of the U.S. crop and two-thirds of America's yield is exported to mills in China, Mexico, Vietnam and Thailand, where textile manufacturers drove prices down by reducing their stockpiles hoping to see a glut on the market and hence lower cotton prices, Miller says. However, their effort did not anticipate the drought and now with shrinking supplies, cotton prices are surging.
The effects go beyond 2011's cotton harvest. Ranchers have sold off cattle in historic numbers, Miller says, many of them getting rid of breeding stock that ranchers can no longer feed and water. The state also lost an entire hay crop, making winter feeding an expensive proposition. While that may mean lower beef prices in the short run as plenty of newly slaughtered cattle hit the marketplace, it likely will mean higher prices down the road since valuable breeding stock is being sold off. Rebuilding herds will be a long, expensive process. "When you sell everything, you lose the genetics," Miller says. "They have selected cattle that do well under that environment and cattlemen have spent their life doing that."
State Climatologist Has
Eye on the Sky for Texas
Courtesy - The Texas Tribune,
Kate Galbraith, March 2, 2012
John Nielsen-Gammon, the Texas state climatologist, has a standard joke: A few years ago, before the start of the most intense drought in state history, almost nobody in Texas knew he existed.
"It's quite possible even Rick Perry didn't know we had a state climatologist," he told an Austin audience recently, to chuckles.
Now, countless public appearances and blog posts later, plenty of Texans have heard about the wry scientist who has become the most prominent expert on the drought. He analyzes weather data and trends and helps the public and policymakers understand issues like how the Texas climate is changing and how long the drought - which still covers nearly all of Texas - will last.
His current answer is that although the drought has eased, Texas has moved into a dry weather pattern that could bring dust storms and wildfires to West Texas, and "if it lasts for a couple of months we will be back in serious trouble in most of the state." Also, it's likely to be another extra-hot summer.
"I've been a state climatologist for 10-plus years now, but I haven't been doing this for 10 years," he said of his hectic schedule, which also includes teaching at Texas A&M University, where he is a professor of atmospheric sciences.
In 2000, Gov. George W. Bush appointed him state climatologist, after the retirement of another Texas A&M professor, John Griffiths, who had held the post since 1973. All states except Rhode Island and Tennessee have a state climatologist office, said Stuart Foster, Kentucky's state climatologist and president-elect of the American Association of State Climatologists - though in seven other states, the state climatologist post is in transition and may be vacant. The largest state climatologist program in the country is in Oklahoma, which operates a cutting-edge system of county-by-county weather stations called Mesonet.
Climate change is a hot-button subject nationally, and state climatologists have sometimes gotten caught in the crossfire, Foster said. Nielsen-Gammon said he has noticed the issue of climate change becoming far more politicized over his 12 years as climatologist, but he's received no political pushback, even though he holds the view that humans contribute to climate change. The closest he comes to the political side, he said with a chuckle, is to be "sensitive to not using politically charged terms in the titles of any talks at state agencies, for fear of somebody seeing a red flag."
To continue reading, click here.
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To Your Health...
Drought in our bodies
The adult human body is about two-thirds water, and most of the key organs and fluids in the body consist primarily of water. The following percentages are estimates and vary slightly from expert to expert and from person to person:
- Brain 85%
- Heart 79%
- Blood 85%
- Intestines 75%
- Lungs 79%
- Liver 90%
- Kidneys 83%
- Muscle 76%
Functions of Water in the Body
In addition to the high water content in the body, basic physiology reveals the importance of drinking water in how the body functions.
Water is essential for EVERY function in the human body. Just a few of the most vital functions include the following:
- Brain functioning
- Organ regulation and cushioning
- Blood and lymph flow
- Nutrient transfer and absorption at the cellular level
- Nerve impulse movement throughout the nervous system
- Hormone balancing
- Temperature regulating
- Joint lubrication and cushioning
- Waste removal
The Body's Water Recycling System
Thus, we know water is critical to the survival and maintenance of the human body. But what is the importance of drinking water daily?
It has to do with the body's water recycling system. The body recycles hundreds of gallons of water a day just to maintain normal biological functions.
During the recycling process the body comes up short of at least six to ten glasses of water per day. This daily water shortage varies greatly depending on individual diet, lifestyle and environmental factors.
No Water Storage System in the Body
In addition to the daily water shortage issue, our bodies have no water storage system to supply water in times of drought - thus, the importance of drinking water regularly and throughout the day.
Contrary to popular belief, most of the water we need does not come from the foods we eat. At best, if we are eating primarily whole, fresh foods, we may get as much as 20 percent of our daily water needs. However, most people are eating a high percentage of processed foods, which have little if any water content.
In addition, many of the beverages we drink-such as alcohol, sodas, coffee and tea-are actually dehydrating to the body. They act as diuretics and cause the body to lose even more fluids.
Drought Management in the Body
What happens to our bodies when we don't drink enough? We start to experience mild dehydration symptoms, such as fatigue, headaches, feeling irritable or anxious, constipation and other digestive disorders, and not sleeping well.
When dehydration continues, the body learns to adapt with a drought management program. However, sooner or later the ill effects will begin to appear
in the body in the form of pain and inflammation. The location of the pain and inflammation often depends on where acid wastes have built up most in the body. There are six conditions that denote chronic dehydration and drought management in the body. These conditions include:
- Asthma
- Allergies
- Constipation
- High blood pressure
- Type II diabetes
- Autoimmune disorders
The Importance of Drinking Water
for Disease Prevention
The importance of drinking water is understated. Water has amazing properties in relation to the maintenance of the human body. Water also plays a key role in disease prevention and the healing of the body. For example, medical research tells us that drinking enough water daily (at least half our body weight in ounces of water) can decrease the risk of bladder cancer by 50 percent and decrease the risk of colon cancer by 45 percent.
As previously stated, when dehydration continues, the body learns to adapt with a drought management program. However, sooner or later the effects do make an appearance.
Information for this article obtained here.
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Legislative Updates -
Supreme Court Delivers Ruling
on Water Regulation
Courtesy statesman.com
By Chuck Lindell
Friday, February 24, 2012
In a ruling likely to have a wide impact on the regulation of water use in Texas, the state Supreme Court today ruled that landowners have an ownership interest in water beneath their land and may be compensated if regulations limit their access to it.
The legal dispute involves a ranch owner who sued when the Edwards Aquifer Authority issued a permit that limited the amount of underground water that could be used. The authority had argued that if landowners can be compensated for limiting access to their water, the result would be a disaster, creating an unknown number of legal disputes and a financial burden that could make regulating water impossible. The unanimous opinion, written by Justice Nathan Hecht, noted regulation of underground water is essential to conserve a limited resource that provides 60 percent of all water used by Texans. "Unquestionably, the state is empowered to regulate groundwater production," the opinion states. " In many areas of the state, and certainly in the Edwards Aquifer, demand exceeds supply." Even so, the state Constitution's takings clause, which says no property can be taken for public use without adequate compensation, applies to underground water, Hecht wrote. "We cannot know, of course, the extent to which the authority's fears will yet materialize, but the burden of the takings clause on government is no reason to excuse its applicability," the opinion said. Ken Kramer, director of the Sierra Club's Lone Star Chapter, said the decision could have disastrous impact on the state economy and environment. "The court has done a huge disservice to everyone who has been working for proper management of the groundwater resources needed for our state's people and our environment," Kramer said. "The likely result of this opinion will be more, not less, litigation over groundwater management in Texas. The decision creates uncertainty about how state, regional, and local entities will now be able to protect groundwater resources," he said. Texas Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples praised the decision as an affirmation of private property rights. "The private ownership of water and land has been protected by generations of Texans and now it is our duty to continue this proud heritage," Staples said. "For over 100 years, landowners have believed that the law gave them a vested private property right in the groundwater beneath their land and I am pleased that the current court upheld that today," said state Sen. Troy Fraser, R-Horseshoe Bay.
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Stoney's 90-Day Challenge
Six Week Review
Six weeks ago, Stoney started at 252 pounds. Last Tuesday morning he was at 231 - down 21 pounds in six weeks!
With fewer pounds and fewer inches, he is feeling great and has more energy. At this rate he is going to have to buy some new clothes again!
Stoney has made great progress and several TACT members have joined with him in their own journies, seeing similar results.
If you are looking to get in better shape and be healthy, please give the TACT office a call! This can be done by anybody and can transform any body! Call Stoney or find out more of what he is doing here.. Stoney would love to visit with you! Follow Stoney's progress on Facebook!
Healthful Hints:
Wear 5 rubber bands around your wrist each day and take one off every time you drink a glass of water. This makes sure you are staying hydrated. If you drink a caffeinated beverage, put a rubber band back on because it dehydrated you!
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Contact Us
Texas Ag Coop Trust
1802 East 50th St., Ste. 107
Lubbock, TX 79404
806-747-7894
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Texas Ag Coop Trust
Officers, Board of Trustees
George Reed, Chairman
United Farm Industries
Plainview, TX
Gregg Allen, Secretary
Olton Grain Coop
Olton, TX
Jim Turner
Dalhart Consumers Fuel Association
Dalhart, TX
Paul Wilson
United Cotton Growers
Levelland, TX
Cary Eubanks
Slaton Coop Gin
Slaton, TX
Dean Sasser
Farmers Coop Elevator
Levelland, TX
Bret Brown
Sunray Coop
Sunray, TX
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Texas Ag Coop Trust
is endorsed by:
Texas Grain & Feed
Association
Texas Cotton Ginners Association
 Texas Coop Marketing Exchange |
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