Jeff Jorgenson, farmer from Sidney, assesses damage to one of his fields caused by historic flooding.
LEVEE CONCERNS FARMERS QUESTION FUTURE OF REPAIRS BY JOSEPH L. MURPHY
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s farmers across the state are busy planting, many acres lie fallow along the Missouri River. That is the harsh reality for farmers like Jeff Jorgenson as they continue to assess the damage caused by historic flooding. "There are serious questions down here,” says Jorgenson, district 7 director for the Iowa Soybean Association. We are wondering if the Corps [United States Army Corps of Engineers] will be able to repair breached levees.” Producers in the area have been attending informational meetings conducted by various government entities but some say there are still more questions than answers. "We mistakenly thought 2011 was
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bad," says Richard Payne, a landowner working to close those breaches and near Percival and one of Jorgenson's regain flood protections for cities and landlords. "This is a lot worse. I’m just farms in the Missouri River basin. about ill." “One of the According to more substantial Major General Scott breaches is in Spellmon, Deputy a levee that Commanding protected the city General for Civil of Hamburg,” says and Emergency Gen. Spellmon. Operations for the “The breach will Major General Army Corps of require nearly Scott Spellmon Engineers, at least one million cubic 32 levee systems yards of material were completely underwater during to complete the initial emergency the floods. As of late April, officials closure. That is the equivalent to counted 114 breaches in those levees, approximately 100,000 dump truck he says. Army Corps officials are loads of material.”
