Severe drought impacts agriculture in eastern Montana counties

By Mackenzie Quinn

(Source: NBC Montana)

It's only May, but many Montana pastures that provide food for cattle are already dry, which is why some cattle fields are empty.

"If we absolutely do not get any rain this spring, there will have to be some major decisions made," said Jim Steinbeisser, president of the Montana Stockgrowers Association. "There are already some decisions being made -- like cows being sold, heifers that they were going to keep as replacements are being sold or put into a feedlot."

Steinbeisser owns a ranch with his family near Sidney. It's located in the heart of the 12 eastern Montana counties which are currently experiencing severe drought.

But Steinbeisser is one of the lucky ones. His ranch has an irrigation system, unlike some of his neighbors.

“We have people that don't have to irrigate because they seem to get rain showers periodically," explained Jan McDonald, treasurer of the Montana Cattlemen's Association. "Right now, in the northeastern corner of Montana, it's severely drought.”

Which means food for cattle is scarce -- and expensive.

"You pay a lot of money to buy hay from elsewhere," McDonald said. "A lot of people will have to buy hay and truck it in from out of state."

Steinbeisser said they already started to make a dent in their stockpile of hay saved for emergencies.

"We're also going to receive a group of heifers from a rancher and feed those heifers for them," said Steinbeisser. But there is only a limited amount, as he explained, "We'll have enough to get through summer, but if it doesn't rain, this fall will be quite a challenge."

Currently 42% of the state is listed as abnormally dry -- a 27% increase compared to this time last year.

"The long-term forecast is for continued drought across nearly all of the state," noted Michael Downey, water planning section supervisor at Montana's Department of Natural Resources and Conservation. "Our last big drought was in 2017."

During 2017, Montana saw 25% of the state in either severe or exceptional states of drought. Severe means poor hay quality with little to no subsoil moisture. Exceptional means destroyed crops and loss of a pasture.

"This year really looks more like a traditional drought," explained Downey. "So, in terms of a trend -- I don't know. I do think that we've been seeing more of these winters where we get extreme cold and extreme warm temperatures."

A study conducted by the DNRC found this year full of abnormal temperatures. With the two wettest months approaching, ranchers continue to face financial struggles.

"When it's a drought year, hay is extremely expensive," McDonald said. "So, not only is our income going down because of marketing problems with cattle, but our costs are going up drastically. It's not a good business to be in right now.”

Ranchers hope rain in May and June will end Montana's statewide drought season.

"We could still have an average year," Steinbeisser said. "But it'll have to come pretty soon."