Mo. approves 3,700 applications for well projects

Thursday, August 9, 2012

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Gov. Jay Nixon says Missouri officials have approved more than 3,700 applications totaling $18.7 million to help drought-stricken farmers and ranchers get more water.

Under the emergency program, the state pays 90 percent of the cost of drilling or deepening a well or expanding an irrigation system. The match is capped at $20,000 per project. State soil and water cost-sharing programs typically cover 75 percent of project costs.

Nixon announced the program in July. Monday was the deadline for farmers and livestock producers to apply.

The state Soil and Water Commission initially approved $2 million for the effort. Nixon quickly added another $5 million because of intense demand.

The governor’s office says it is using its authority to respond to emergencies to provide additional funding for the program.

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JCLifer 10 months, 1 week ago

Did DNR approve this wholesale assault on the state's ever-lowering water table?

asb 10 months, 1 week ago

Yes, in fact DNR is where the Soil & Water Conservation program is located. Dozens of DNR staff from other Programs have been processing applications and traveling to farms to evaluate them. My sister was a recipient and she said that DNR and Ag middle and upper management came to her place in Southwest Mo. Quite a blitz, hope fraud will be kept to a minimum.

him 10 months, 1 week ago

That is why these new wells were approved, because the water table is lower and people wells are dry. The water table will get replenished. People livestock won't.

asb 10 months, 1 week ago

Dried up ponds are another major reason. Also, lots of well pumps and long haul water line pumps are being installed.

JCLifer 10 months, 1 week ago

Tell the folks out west about how the water table will be replentished. The water table keeps dropping from all the wells pumping the water out. Here we have the government encouraging folks to pump even more water out of the water table. What are they going to do when many of the older wells go dry- come out with yet another program of free government money to the rescue?

Doesn't seem very environmentally responsible to pump more and more water out of the water table. Doesn't seem very fiscally responsible to use our tax dollars to help do it either.

No one is a hypocrite if they are getting the benefit.

Littleinvestor 10 months, 1 week ago

From about Jefferson City south, excluding the Springfield-Joplin areas, the Salem Plateau area of the Ozarks Aquifer is replenished fairly rapidly by precipitation because of the limestone and sandstone. (Check DNR's aquifer info on the web.) In much of the west (I'm most familiar with the Phoenix area) the water being pumped is "prehistoric," meaning it got there thousands of years ago and is not replenished by rainfall, or if it is it occurs very slowly. That's just geology. But I don't know why the farmers could not pay for their own wells, water lines and pumps. They might have to borrow money but that is just the cost of doing business. I've got a cattle farmer near me who strung 1,000s of feet of water lines and put in waterers all over his farm a couple of years ago. Other than the fact he is feeding hay right now, his cattle look healthy.

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