Oregon Water Challenges, Cows Killed & Disaster Counties Named

Oregon Water Challenges, Cows Killed & Disaster Counties Named plus Food Forethought. I'm Greg Martin with today's Northwest Report. Even with all the rain in the northwest many Oregon farmers are trying to cope with severe cutbacks in the amount of water available for irrigation. Farmers and ranchers in the Klamath Basin want the rest of Oregon to realize that agriculture is viable in the basin according to Greg Addington with the Klamath Water Users Association. ADDINGTON: I think so often that people think of Klamath in sort of negative sense- the water wars, people using water and fighting about water. But the fact is, we're growing a lot of food that people use every day. It's all about water here. Good, bad, or otherwise, that's the deal. Four cows standing under a tree in a pasture were killed instantly last Wednesday afternoon by a bolt of lightning near Milton-Freewater, Ore. Two of the cows fell on their calves. A neighbor was able to pull the dead animals off the calves and save them. Flooding rivers and creeks caused by prolonged rains and snowpack runoff are blamed for washing out sections of roads and damaging bridges in Idaho's Adams, Idaho and Valley counties. The Idaho Bureau of Homeland Security has declared a disaster emergency which clears the way to make state support and resources available, including personnel, equipment and facilities. Now with today's Food Forethought, here's Lacy Gray. It's most certainly easier said than done. I'm talking about controlling negative attitudes, emotions and habits in order to improve your physical and mental health. Those not familiar with the daily business of farming or ranching might think that farmers and ranchers do not have as much stress as someone who works a non-agricultural job answering to a supervisor or boss. They would be wrong. In fact, farmers and ranchers face a multitude of stress related issues on a day to day basis consisting of planting schedules, labor issues, weather patterns, livestock health and safety, and wildly fluctuating markets, to name just a few. While farmers tend to smoke less than the general population, a large majority of farmers are apt to cope with stress through excessive worry, over eating, or most commonly, over working. When all these negative behaviors are combined they increase a person's risk for heart disease and other serious health issues. Farm and ranch families who are finding themselves under increasing pressure need to seek help in dealing with the additional stress. In this instance especially it's okay to not be self-sufficient. Thanks Lacy. That's today's Northwest Report. I'm Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network.