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• Q: What are the implications for spring in terms of melt-off and inland rivers?
• A: I think it's a little too early. Even with the good fall rains and the recharge of the soil, it went really well into the top 18 inches or so of the soil -- what I call the topsoil layer. That deeper soil layer didn't see as much of that moisture.
• That being said, with the snowfall that we've had this winter and as we go into spring melt, there is room for more of that moisture to go into the soil profile. If we end up getting some of those wet, heavy snows toward the end of the snow season again, and we warm up right away ... that's going to be more cause for flood potential than if we see a slow, gradual melt-off and slower warm-up.
• The conditions we see in the end of March and the first part of April are really going to dictate flood potential.
• Q: Along those lines, will the climate this spring dictate how quickly farmers can get back in their fields?
• A: Yeah. Last spring, we were cold and we stayed cold. Most producers were several weeks behind in getting their crops in the fields and even those who got in early had some issues because it just didn't warm up until mid-May. As much as you like to plan and prepare, the one thing we can't control is the weather, and that's always the curveball.
• Q: We've dealt routinely in recent years with questions about river levels. What's your gut telling you about them this season?
• A: In 2012, we were at the very low end of the spectrum, and 2011 we were at the very high end with a lot of flooding. Then last year we still had some reduced flows and levels, but they seemed to rebound fairly quickly. To see that quick rebound is telling me that ... we're in way better shape than we were in 2012.
• We still have ample opportunity to accumulate moisture through the winter. How quickly we warm up in the spring is going to ... dictate how much stress is put on those rivers with the water that they can handle.
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