The Dust Bowl

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The Dust BowlCan It Happen Again

• Mike Sporcic
• National Wind Erosion Specialist
• USDA NRCS

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Not Far From Home
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• Bismark, ND

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• Liberal, KS April 14, 1935

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• A black blizzard over Prowers Co. CO. 1937

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• Black Sunday April 14, 1935. The dust storm that
  turned day into night. Many believed the world
  was coming to an end. Dodge City, KS

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• A black blizzard over Prowers Co., CO 1937

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• June 4, 1937, at Goodwell, OK

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• Dust storm approaching Stratford, TX April 18,
  1935

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• Dust storm approaching Stratford, TX April 18,
  1935

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• Approaching dust storm at Powers Co., CO Storm
  lasted from 415 PM to 700 PM

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• A black blizzard over Prower Co., CO 1937

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• Dust storm at Sheridan Lake, CO

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• A dust cloud approaching a small town in OK

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Fleeing a dust storm

• Farmer Arthur Coble and sons walking in the face
  of the dust storm. April, 1936

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• Dust is too much for this farmers son in
  Cimarron County, OK 1936

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• Sometimes it was deep.

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• Garden City, KS at 515 PM (note the street
  lights photo 1) and compare to photo 2. Photo 2
  was just 15 min. later after the dust blotted out
  the sun.

Photo 2
Photo 1
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• Dust storm approaching Elkhart, KS
• May, 1937

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• Red Cross volunteers wearing dust masks. Liberal,
  KS

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• The Dust Bowl and drought devastated some farm
  families in the early 1930s, such as this 32
  year old mother of seven. Migrant Mother 1936

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But Today Things are Different, or Are They?

• Dallas 2/07 Before After

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One More

• Dallas 2/07 Before After

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Things are not so different!

• This is just north of Big Springs, TX on the
  south edge of the Dust Bowl. Feb/07

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Areas of Concern for Wind Erosion
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Wind Erosion Continues

• As recently as the spring of 1996 wind erosion
  severely damaged ag land throughout the Great
  Plains.
• On Cropland, about 172 million acres are eroded
  by wind and water at twice the soil loss
  tolerance rate.
• Wind erosion is about 40 of this loss, and can
  increase markedly in drought years.

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Wind Erosion, the Problem

• Wind erosion is the dominate problem on about 74
  million acres and moderately severe on 5 million
  acres.
• NRI data shows a 0.8 of a ton/ac improvement from
  1982 to 1994 mostly from CRP.

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Wind Takes the Best

• Wind erosion removes the lighter, less dense soil
  constituents such as OM, clays, and silts.
• It has been estimated that it causes annual yield
  reductions of 339,000 bu of Wheat and 543,000 bu
  of sorghum on 1.2 million acres of sandy soil in
  SW KS. Somewhat masked by technology.
• It damages seedlings.

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Wind Erosion Gets in the Air

• Suspension becomes part of the atmospheric dust
  load.
• It can cause health issues as PM-10 and PM 2.5.
• NM has a non-attainment over Las Cruces.
• It routinely causes Interstate 10 to be closed,
  hopefully before someone is killed.
• Some states use EQIP to reduce sediment load in
  borrow ditches and on roads.

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KS Rainfall 1895-2002
Dry Years and high eroson
Dry Years and high erosion
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New Mexico Rainfall 1895-2002
Dry Years
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Rainfall 1935
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Rainfall 1936
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Rainfall 1937
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Rainfall 1951
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Rainfall 1956
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Major Things that Effect Wind Erosion

• Crop Rotation, high residue crops vs low residue
  row crops. Alfalfa system erode less.
• Tillage practices, Heavy tillage like plows vs
  No-till or non-inversion tillage like sweeps.
• Surface Roughness, Ridging and Clodiness reduce
  erosion and trap moving soil particles.
• Cover Crops, Used for cover when low residue
  crops are grown.
• Amount of Grazing, Eastern NM systems have heavy
  grazing in them.
• Annual Rainfall, dry cropland will blow on dry
  years, even with good mgt.
• Timing of tillage, Land heavy tilled soon after
  harvest will erode more that delaying tillage
  closer to seeding time.
• Irrigation, wet soil blows less.