5 minute read
Built Strong
Farmers along Missouri River confident in levee repairs
BY BETHANY BARATTA
One year ago, Jeff Jorgenson’s plan to grow soybeans and corn in his fields along the Missouri River was washed away by unprecedented flooding. Today, the Sidney farmer says he’s optimistic that rebuilt levees will provide protection and allow crops to grow this year.
“We’re really gaining on getting this ground ready for planting in 2020,” says Jorgenson, president-elect for the Iowa Soybean Association (ISA), during a break from moving dirt in a restored field.
Since March 2019, Jorgenson has been involved in flood recovery and land restoration efforts. He’s hosted local, state and federal officials to explain the damages not only to the L-575 levee, which impacted him 6 miles away but also to provide solutions on how to fix it.
Progress
Recently, conversations with Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig have centered around the progress that’s been made. That was evident during a recent tour with Naig and staff from the Farm Service Agency and the Natural Resources Conservation Service.
“We relied on feedback from farmers on the ground throughout the whole recovery process,” Naig says. “Their input helped shape the state and federal response. We were able to allocate resources based on local needs so these farmers could get their land back into operation faster.”
The tour included visits to several locations to demonstrate progress made on flood recovery. Perhaps the most interested visitor was the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Risk Management Agency. It's in charge of setting crop insurance rates.
Officials hope the repaired levees will prevent flooding of towns and farmland during this upcoming growing season and beyond.
The tour proved the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and its contractors successfully met the requirements of the RMA in its quest to rebuild the levees. This means farmers within the levee area will have access to crop insurance with the same available coverage and at the same rates as preflood levels.
“Crop insurance is one of the most valuable risk management tools that we have, especially here in the river bottoms,” says John Askew, a farmer near Thurman and past ISA president.
The RMA says it will consider premium rate determinations on a case-by-case basis if repair work is completed after the sales closing date or earliest planting date. Cropland behind levees that’s not repaired to prior specifications may carry the highest premium rate classification in the county for the 2020 crop year, the RMA notes.
Askew, a levee sponsor near the L-594 levee, says he’s seen significant progress since work began there in earnest in December. In some areas, breaches were more than 500 feet across.
Floodwaters inundated Askews’s farm and seed business.
“On March 17, we watched our seed building get flooded,” says Askew, the sixth generation on his family’s farm. “We watched water come 15 feet from our house; water covered about one-third of our farm.”
Water receded, then rose again. His fields were flooded three times last year.
“After the March flood, I had all my crops planted and then ended up losing about 25% during the second flood,” he says. “After that, I planted all of those acres with cover crops and they all died because they got flooded the third time.”
The Askews predict they lost 70% of their seed business. The levee Askew manages covers 12,000 acres and 22 homes. Only two homes in the district were unscathed during the flooding.
John Askew
Cooperation, construction
Favorable winter weather allowed progress to continue on the levees during the winter, says Todd Tobias, quality assurance for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Freezing temperatures helps stabilize roads near the levees by which contractors could continue their work for the March RMA deadline.
There were three major breeches on the L-594 levee have been repaired in the last year. From Jan. 6 until March 1, contractors have used 335,000 yards of sand and 135,000 yards of clay to make temporary repairs. Much of the materials were found nearby — in farmers’ fields. That reduced the cost of the project while also helping farmers clean up their fields in preparation for additional cleanup and, eventually, planting.
“In that same time period, we also made sure all the places where the levees were topped and scours that were cut were built back up to standards,” Tobias says. “We also put 20,000 tons of rock on top of the levee so we have a good surface for flood fighting if necessary.”
Both Jorgenson and Askew say their proximity to Interstate 29 and the Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad line was favorable as the corps determined priority areas.
Jeff Jorgenson
“The reality is we have a railroad and an interstate system and we have to be able to use them,” Jorgenson says. “That in itself is a difference-maker. If it wasn’t for those two things, we probably wouldn’t be in as good of shape in getting things repaired the way they have.”
The corps will also be slowing the discharge rate from the Gavins Point Dam from 35,000 cubic yards per second to 20,000 cubic yards per second. This should help mitigate flood risks, Askew says.
“Change in flow rate means the corps is paying attention to what’s happening down here,” Askew says. “We never felt that they did before.”
Tobias says design projects are underway to map out more permanent fixes to the levee this summer. He’s confident the change to the water flow rate upstream and the sand, clay and rock being used to fix the levee will get the corps through potential flood-fighting this year.
“This spring and summer should be a normal spring and summer for us — if we did our job right,” Tobias says.
Eternal optimists
As Jorgenson worked in his fields, leveling out scours made from water rushing over his fields for three months, he felt optimistic this year would be better than last.
“I do not anticipate record-breaking yields out here,” he says about his expected soybean and corn crop this year. “But it’s a really good start.”
The work is far from over, he says. As of late March, some roads were still impassable, let alone ready for heavy equipment typically used for planting and harvesting. Askew, a trustee in a drainage district encompassing 34,000 acres in Fremont County, says the next step will be fixes to the drainage systems there.
A part of that is relying on the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to assess the damage in hopes federal funding can help return the system to full functionality.
Askew says he’ll focus heavily on soil health this year. He’s optimistic his seed business will make a comeback in the years ahead.
“We’re hopeful for a good year,” Askew says. “We’ll get everything planted and be fully confident in that levee system holding this year.”
— JEFF JORGENSON
Jeff Jorgenson, ISA president-elect from Sidney, surveys a levee that was recently repaired. The levee broke during the Missouri River flood, causing flood waters to inundate area farms.
Contact Bethany Baratta at bbaratta@iasoybeans.com.
