Midwest Flooding, Drought in Other Areas - Economic Impact

@newtondak (3946)
United States
June 13, 2008 8:40am CST
We're seeing a lot of media coverage of the flooding in the midwest - especially in central Iowa. I am concerned, however, that when a disaster such as this occurs in the Midwest, there seems to be much less concern than for example when the levees broke after Katrina and flooded New Orleans. The economic impact of such massive flooding - for example, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, does not only reach the people of that area, but also any of us who might be consumers of the products raised or produced in that area. Acres and acres of farmland in the midwest are underwater. Many acres have not been planted to crops because of the excess rainfall these areas have received. Much of the cropland that was previously planted is now underwater. There will be no corn crop in much of the midwest as it is too late in the season to replant even when the water does go down. The soybean crop is also in jeopardy as the timeline for planting is passing. Wheat in many areas is underwater or can not be harvested due to the wet conditions. In other areas of the United States, dought conditions are causing havoc with crops in those areas as well impacting our nations's supplies of wheat and other grains. Grasslands normally used to graze cattle are barren and wildfires in some areas have burned valuable grass and hay. Even before these events, our the state of our economy was declining quickly. What will happen now that our supplies of many of these crops has been destroyed?
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