Agricultural News
Dust Bowl Documentary Underscores Conservation Successes, Concerns
Tue, 06 Nov 2012 18:04:04 CST
The new Ken Burns documentary series on the Dust Bowl airs beginning November 18 on OETA. In concert with the premiere, the Oklahoma Association of Conservation Districts has sponsored a series of advance screenings across Oklahoma. On Monday in Stillwater, the OACD presented another of its screenings and a roundtable discussion with guests who lived through the Dust Bowl and current policymakers.
OACD Executive Director Clay Pope says the screenings have been an opportunity to reflect on successful conservation efforts over the years while also serving as a cautionary tale about the future.
"One of the stories we're trying to tell as we've had these advance screenings of the "Dust Bowl" around the state is that while right now we're in a time period that's rivaled anything we saw during the Dust Bowl as far as the drought of the last two to three years has been as dry as some of the worst years we saw in the 1930s. And we haven't seen the return of the dust storms. And I think that's a real testimony to the good stewardship ethic of the farmers and ranchers of Oklahoma, the work that's been done in partnership with conservation districts with the USDA, NRCS, with the conservation commission working together to keep that tide of dust at bay. We've got a lot to be proud of.
"Now, the flip side of that argument is, you know, just not too long ago, we saw that dust storm in north central Oklahoma that closed down I-35. I think that story should serve as a stark reminder of what can happen if you're not careful. Now, not that anybody was doing anything evil, doing anything bad, but we've just got to be careful because it is easy to see these problems rise again if we don't make sure we keep that monster that was the Dust Bowl in the cage."
Pope says, so far, efforts at preventing another widespread event of that magnitude have been successful, and current efforts by lawmakers appear to be sufficient-for now.
"If we do practice due diligence and continue to practice good conservation, our policymakers both in Oklahoma City and Washington, D.C., continue to put a focus on conservation and give us the resources to work with farmers and ranchers to make sure we're doing everything we can, working together these last two years in keeping that monster locked up, I think we can continue to see it in the future."
Pope says though it was purely coincidental that the documentary is premiering after two years of drought in Oklahoma it serves to underscore the importance of continuing conservation efforts.
"I think it is serving as a good reminder, I think it's a way for us to celebrate how far we've come, but also to make sure that we stand guard to make sure that we don't go back, not only on soil erosion, but on other natural resource challenges as well.
"So we're just tickled to be able to go out and tell the story and hopefully we can keep patting the farmers on the back and continue the good stewardship effort that started in the 30s."
But, Pope says, as dry weather continues across western Oklahoma, a new Dust Bowl is not out of the question.
"I think one of the things we do have to be mindful of: there has been a lot of ground that was worked a bunch this summer. The wheat was dusted in. The same thing happened last year. We were lucky we caught rains in November. We may still catch rains in November, but I am getting a little concerned with this El Nino starting to fizzle out in the Pacific. If we go into a real dry winter, if we don't see significant rain over central and western Oklahoma in the next two to three weeks, there's a chance of some wheat blowing out."
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