The Dust Bowl and Agriculture Essay - 1070 Words

One has not experienced the life of living in dirt until he has been in the dust bowl. It was a decade-long dust storm that impacted hundreds of farmers and their farmlands. Hardship was among one of the influences of the storm, which affected both farm workers and city folks. The storm also brought the elements of destruction and darkness, which reigned chaos across the Plains. Together, these issues gave the storm its popular name, â€Å"black blizzard† (Documentary, 2014). Such a name was given due to the storm’s visibility as a large black cloud, which made it look evil and scary. Although the black blizzard is what some people call the dust storm, most will refer it as the dust bowl. The dust bowl has a long history for its impact on†¦show more content†¦What led to that event was the drought, bad farming techniques and strong wind gusts (Rosenberg, 2014). First, dry weather reduced the amount of precipitation annually; as a result, crops withered from no water supply. The drought followed by farmers who continued to abuse their farms led to topsoil being exposed on the land’s surface. Finally, once wind gust came into the Great Plains, the topsoil was blown from the land’s surface into the dry air (Documentary, 2014). From there, the topsoil accumulated in the air and formed dust clouds, which the winds carried across the nation. This marks the beginning of the dust bowl. It proved to be hazardous to anything in its path, for it was similar to foggy weather, but worse. Instead of blinding eye vision, the dust storm caused an array of issues, such as burying cars, getting into people’s houses, conflicting with oxygen levels in the air and bombarding people’s mouths (Rosenberg, 2014). The dust was everywhere to exact. So much dust pushed farmers to the decision of migrating west or staying and adapting to the dust storms (Documentary, 2014). Such a decision was not simple, for either way would lead to hards hip and suffering. The dust bowl was no simple storm. Throughout the timeframe of the dust bowl, leaders were realizing that action must be taken. For example, Hugh Bennett, known as the â€Å"father of soil conservation,† helped Congress understand that the dust bowl was a serious issueShow MoreRelatedMistreatment of Land, Natural Disaster, and Drought Created the Dust Bowl in America558 Words   |  3 PagesThe Dust Bowl was a time period in which many dust storms affected the agriculture and economy of the United States. Before the dust storms and droughts, the land being used by the farmers was already being damaged. Overuse had caused the soil to become useless, and by over-cultivating the land, farmers were no longer able to use the once fertile soil, causing a major impact on the lives of those involved in agriculture. 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