Press Release- Aug 22, 2007
OFFICE OF GOV. BILL RITTER, JR.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
WEDNESDAY, AUG. 22, 2007
CONTACT
Evan Dreyer, 720.350.8370
Christi Lightcap, 303.239.4190
GOV. RITTER DECLARES STATE OF EMERGENCY TO HELP FARMERS TRANSPORT WHEAT FROM FARM TO MARKET
Gov. Bill Ritter today declared a disaster emergency and temporarily suspended certain motor carrier registration requirements because a shortage of commercial vehicles is jeopardizing farmers' ability to move harvested wheat off the ground and into storage facilities.
The Governor issued an executive order that suspends for 45 days restrictions on the hiring of farm-plated vehicles to transport raw agricultural products to railroad loading points, storage facilities or to market.
This season, Colorado farmers are experiencing the largest wheat harvest in nearly 10 years - double last year's harvest with more than 87 million bushels harvested. But many of the trucking and rail carriers formerly serving these agricultural markets have gone out of business in recent years due to the drought, low commodity prices, and high fuel prices.
Current Colorado law provides that farm-plated vehicles may only be used to transport raw agricultural products "actually produced" by a farmer or commodities "purchased by such farmer . . . for personal use and used in such person's farming or ranching operations." One means of easing Colorado's shortage of commercial trucks is to allow, on a temporary basis, farm-plated vehicles to be hired as commercial haulers of agricultural products.
"I find the temporary suspension of this statute necessary to prevent the imminent threat of widespread and severe damage and loss of property in the State of Colorado," Gov. Ritter said in the executive order. "The confluence of a bumper wheat crop, the urgent need to move the wheat being stored on the ground into elevator storage, and the shortage of commercially available transportation to accomplish this poses an imminent threat to property and, therefore, constitutes a disaster emergency."
Because of the shortage of transportation and storage, in excess of 10 million bushels of wheat is currently "on the ground" in temporary storage. At current market prices, this inventory exceeds $60 million. Due to ground moisture, wheat that is currently being stored on the ground will soon degrade if it is not moved to grain elevator storage. In addition, wheat stored in some elevators must be transported to the secondary market in order to make room for other agricultural products being harvested.
"If this transportation need is not quickly met, Colorado wheat farmers will suffer a substantial loss of their wheat crop, which, in turn, will adversely impact Colorado's economy," said Colorado Agriculture Commissioner John Stulp. "One means of easing this transportation shortage is to allow farm-plated vehicles to be hired to help meet this shortfall."
"The urgency of meeting this transportation shortage is exacerbated by the coming corn harvest, which begins in late September," Commissioner Stulp added. "Many elevators are used for both wheat and corn, and if the wheat in storage is not moved out of these elevators before the corn harvest begins, both wheat and corn farmers will be adversely impacted."
"Over 80 percent of Colorado's wheat is ultimately exported, so our farmers know that they must be involved throughout the process to deliver their high quality wheat to the markets of the world," Gov. Ritter said. "The long-term strength of our rural counties is built on agriculture, and this challenge illustrates how today's farm economy is more than planting and harvesting. It's critically linked to an efficient and cost-effective transportation system to move our wheat to market."