Issue link: http://www.insightdigital.biz/i/80745
UP FRONT Regional Roundup » By Karla Wotruba Dry ground This summer' 14 ■ Face T ime » "This is a slow-motion distaster," — Jim Kasten, Omro dairy farmer, on the statewide drought 19 ■ Connections » 22 s drought expected to have long-lasting effect Ethanol industry feels the drought impact ike the corn crop it's made from, Wisconsin's "There are nine ethanol plants in Wisconsin," says Bob Oleson, executive director of Wisconsin Corn Growers Association. "They all use Wisconsin corn, and that corn tends to come from within a 50- mile radius of the facility. L fledgling ethanol industry is under the weather. corn crop, ethanol plants are cutting back on production or slowing down for maintenance. "They're concerned about the physical With severe drought decimating Wisconsin's " availability of corn," he says. In addition, "there is some pressure from some groups to change fuel standards," he says. On Aug. 2, 156 members of the U.S. House Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker declared a state of emergency in all Wisconsin counties following this summer's nationwide drought. WHEN THE RAIN FINALLY CAME to Wisconsin in mid-July, it was too little, too late to save the state's corn crop. While the immediate effects of the summer's drought were stunted plants, low yields and high grain prices, the true impact will be felt well into 2013 and even years to come. On July 17, Gov. Scott Walker declared a state of emergency covering all 72 Wisconsin counties, and on July 25, the U.S. Department of Agriculture declared 23 Wisconsin counties natural 12 | INSIGHT • September 2012 disaster areas, including New North counties Fond du Lac, Green Lake and Marquette. By the end of July, the U.S. Drought Monitor showed extreme drought conditions in the southern third of Wisconsin, and drought conditions covered the lower half of the state, along with two-thirds of the continental United States. Bob Oleson, executive director of Wisconsin Corn Growers Association, says the drought hit the Corn Belt particularly hard. "We have fields of Representatives signed a letter calling on the Environmental Protection Agency to reduce the Renewable Fuel Standard requiring the use of ethanol. The requirement mandates that refiners blend 13.2 billion gallons of ethanol into fuel. Livestock producers have also petitioned to waive the mandate. Oleson says 4 billion bushels of Wisconsin corn goes to ethanol production, while 1.3 billion comes back as livestock feed. This hits the industry after the end of a 45-cent-per-gallon tax subsidy that ended Dec. 31. Gasoline companies stocked up, creating heavy demand and large-scale production, but demand has since fallen off. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, in 2010 Wisconsin ranked ninth in the nation in ethanol production and produced 438 million gallons of ethanol. –Karla Wotruba where the pollination just didn't work this year. In Winnebago County, the situation is dire but comparatively better than " www. insightonbusiness.com BECKY HIBICKI, WISCONSIN FARM BUREAU FEDERATION