-
This year, wildfires have already burned thousands of acres in the Great Plains. Dry conditions and unseasonably warm temperatures have optimal settings for wildfires, and some experts say they are seeing more intense fires.
-
A dry winter, El Niño and the warmest winter temperatures on record are contributing to ongoing dry conditions across the Midwest.
-
Missouri applied for the grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture after two straight years of drought forced some livestock farmers to reduce their herd size because they did not have enough food or water.
-
Worldwide, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said last week that 2023 has a greater than 99% chance of being the hottest on record. During the August heat wave in Missouri, the state saw more than 260 temperature records tied or broken.
-
Huge swaths of Missouri and Kansas have continued to be stuck in a months-long drought. But El Niño, a months-long weather pattern that typically brings warm winters and extra precipitation to the central U.S., brings hope.
-
Drought has affected several pumpkin-producing states, including Illinois, Indiana and Michigan. But rain arrived at the right time to produce a bumper crop in parts of the Midwest.
-
Quivira's marshes have a legal right to water. Kansas has never enforced it, because doing so would hurt farmers who use the water for crop irrigation.
-
Hot and dry weather across the Midwest is creating a ripe situation for wildfires, especially as farmers head into the fields for harvest.
-
Many pension-holding public employees in Kansas haven't seen cost-of-living adjustments in decades. Without lawmakers' support, years of higher inflation mean many retirees are seeing the value of their payments vanish. Plus: Climate change is making farming riskier and crop insurance more expensive.
-
Crop insurance costs are rising, fueled by climate change. Yet little has changed in federal programFederally subsidized crop insurance made record-high payouts last year. While climate change is making farming more risky, the federal program often shields producers at taxpayer expense. Some argue it’s time that the fast-growing program encourages farmers to mitigate their risks.
-
Recent heat and drought have fueled concerns about this year’s corn crop, as producers in the Midwest see a wide range of conditions.
-
The lack of moisture has far-reaching implications, including on agricultural production and water levels on the country's largest rivers, like the Mississippi and the Missouri.