The Why of Dry: A special report - WSFA.com: News Weather and Sports for Montgomery, AL.

As Luke Bryan says it, rain is a good thing. It sure is, but there hasn't been a whole lot of it. So farmers have had to make their own.

"Times would be tough without irrigation," says farmer Carl Sanders. You have to make sure you have a good water supply. Then you have to buy the hardware. It's a lot of investment."

And that investment goes up when rainfall fails to come down.

Between electrical, equipment and labor, it costs about $20 to put one inch of water over one acre of land. Carl irrigates 175 acres, often putting down 10 inches of water in a given year. That's $35,000 just to supplement what Mother Nature is supposed to do for free.

And for farmers who don't invest in crop irrigation?

"Well, they're going to be hurt financially," Sanders says. "And low yields just hurt everybody. It hurts the whole community."

That means a change in the numbers at your local grocery store.

"Supermarket prices are going to go up. They can't help but do it. It's supply and demand."

If you think it's been dry in 2012, you're right. But the issues don't necessarily stem from one dry season but rather many years of too little rain.

According to Chief Meteorologist Rich Thomas, the answer lies with the location of the Bermuda high.

"The position of the Bermuda high has not been over the western Atlantic where we expect it," he says. It's been more over the southeastern United States. This has had a dramatic effect in lessening the amount of showers and thunderstorms over the United States. "

Over the last 15 years there have only been two years when rainfall was at or above average in Montgomery. That means the other 13 years have been below "normal".

The long duration dryness has had a significant impact on the ground water level.

"All our branches, streams, creeks and ponds are all low," Sanders says. "Our water table has just gone down drastically."

"I have one friend that's a farmer and he says farming's just not fun like it used to be. It's just unreal the amount of expense we have. Yes, we have a profit potential, but there's also a loss potential if you don't make that crop. There's a lot of pressure on farmers now."

And that pressure has changed the face of farming in Alabama.

Sanders says the number of farmers in Alabama has dropped over the last ten years, while the average age of the farmers has increased.

But like anything else, farming is a business. And the viability depends on your bottom line.

"There's always a concern when you have this much money in invested in a business and you want the business to carry on. You want it to be successful. And hopefully it will."

And that success depends on rainfall, whether natural or manmade.

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