McHenry County enters summer in drought, agriculture market affected

McHENRY COUNTY – McHenry County has entered summer in a severe drought, leaving local farmers struggling to grow a decent crop, and the County struggling financially as it depends on the agricultural market.

Typically there’s precipitation in the winter and spring, and then a drought period in the summer, but the county does not usually begin summer in a drought, which has raised concerns this year, said Scott Kuykendall, water resources specialist at the County Department of Planning and Development.

While the snowfall in February helped bring moisture up, higher winds sucked moisture from the ground, as did high temperatures, causing a drought, Kuykendall said.

The moderate to severe drought is not a statewide issue, according to the U.S. drought monitor for Illinois. It is mainly in the northeast corner of Illinois.

Agriculture is a major economic driver for the McHenry County market, said Jim McConoughey, president of McHenry County Economic Development corporation.

McHenry County is currently two weeks behind in the growing cycle, but there’s time for that to be made up by August, McConoughey said.

McConoughey said if July accumulates approximately two more inches of rain than usual precipitation, then the County can make up for this situation; however, if July and August produce regular perceptiation, and nothing additional, crop productions will be negatively affected.

Kuykendall said the community of Huntley receives water from deep bedrock aquifers, and it takes thousands of years for water to replenish in those aquifers, so when people take water out, it’s not replaced in our lifetime, he said.

Groundwater aquifers, on the other hand, will recover quickly once there is precipitation, Kuykendall said. Water will fill up the pore spaces between the sand and gravel particles and the shallow aquifers will fill quickly.

Kuykendall said when water is used, and not getting recharged from rainfall, it drives the water table down.

“[The end of the drought] all depends on how much rain falls and when we get the rain,” Kuykendall said.

Henry Zierer has been a farmer in McHenry County for 30 years, and this summer his first cut of hay was ⅔ of what it normally is on a first cut.

Zierer said 11 years ago he invested in an irrigation system, and the hay is green where the system operates, and where it doesn’t, the hay is brown.

“We need water, plain and simple,” Zierer said.

Zierer said he’ll need more rain throughout summer to be able to get a halfway decent crop.

Wendy Kummerer, director of marketing at McHenry County Conservation District, said the district has seen changes in wildlife.

For example, July plant species are in full bloom now, she said.

Kummerer said ecologists at the Conservation District are watering trees they planted last fall and this spring, and they typically never have to do that.

Wetlands are also drying out, Kummerer said. Employees have been warned to watch out for turtles. The turtles are crossing walkways to find a new location with a wetter environment because the ponds are drying out.

But there are positives, Kummerer said. There are no mosquitoes, and mowing frequency has reduced, which means less gas is being used, so less carbon emissions are going into the sky.

“We need to be more and more responsible as time goes on. You can’t wait until you’re causing a problem to change behavior,” Kuykendall said.