63% of U.S. acres in drought, up 20 points since Labor Day; shipping on St. Lawrence River has become compromised

Drought Monitor map (lines delineate dominant impacts; S: short-term impacts, typically less than six months (on farms and grasslands); L: longer-term impacts (on hydrology, ecology); SL: short- and long-term impacts)

"More than six of every 10 acres in the continental United States is in drought, with arid conditions stretching from the Appalachians to the Pacific Coast," Chuck Abbott reports for Successful Farming, citing the weekly Drought Monitor of the University of Nebraska's Drought Mitigation Center, produced in partnership with USDA and NOAA.

The extent of drought has increased 20 percent since Labor Day, to 63%, Abbott notes. “The extent of dry conditions is on par with 2012, as drought expanded this week across more than half of the U.S. states, particularly in the Midwest and Southeast,” the center said on social media.

Abbott reports, "The growing season is over for most field crops, but drought affects pasture conditions for livestock as well as the winter wheat crop, which accounts for the lion’s share of U.S. wheat production. A dry winter would leave 2023 crops short of moisture as the new season begins. Low water has hindered barge traffic on the Mississippi River and grain exports from the Gulf of Mexico. Water levels in the St. Lawrence River, another major shipping conduit, have fallen to 10-year lows near Montreal, reported Bloomberg. An official with an international control board for the river said ships have had to lighten their loads to cope with the low water. At least one shipping company raised its rates to carry cargo to and from Montreal."