Browse Water Stories - Page 20

As the seasons turn, commercial bell pepper growers in the Southeast share a common foe: the sun.

April continued the trend of warmer than normal months across the region. Temperatures continued to be 2 to 4 degrees above normal. Rainfall was scarce across most of the state, leading to increases in drought conditions across all but the far northwest corner of Georgia.

University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental doctoral student Erico Rolim de Mattos envisions a world where exploding human populations, global climate change and land overdevelopment has rendered mankind incapable of producing enough food to sustain humanity. This scenario is a very real possibility, and it has captured the minds of specialists from organizations like NASA and the United Nations.

Goats and sheep have a reputation for eating vegetation that most other grazing animals would not touch. This trait makes them invaluable to people who need to raise livestock in tough climates, but it’s also made them popular for landowners who need to clear brush or invasive plants from overgrown parcels.

The Conserve Research Program helps landowners protect their land – a precious natural resource. But landowners can’t participate if they don’t know about the program.

Seven years ago Chris Hopkins and his wife Marilynn started their row crop operation on 50 acres of rented land in Toombs County. Since that time, the Hopkins’ farm has grown to encompass 600 acres of cotton, peanuts, corn timber, watermelons and pecans.

As summer transitions into fall, students across Georgia return to their classrooms. Whether those classrooms are virtual, at home or in a brick-and-mortar school, learning can occur anywhere. The Georgia 4-H Environmental Education Program uses nature as a classroom for students across the Southeast.

Based on the average mean temperature, Alma, Athens, Augusta, Columbus and Savannah, as well as Tallahassee, Fla., all experienced the hottest summer on record.

Extreme drought conditions now cover most of Georgia south of the mountains. Extreme drought is the next-to-highest drought category. All counties in Georgia are now classified as being in moderate, severe or extreme drought.

Though there are still areas of exceptional drought, scattered showers in July reduced drought in south Georgia. But dry conditions increased in north Georgia. Hot temperatures plagued the whole state.