Latest groundwater figures are good news for area farmers

The latest water summary update from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources has good news for Northeast Iowa farmers. 

Normally weather in Iowa at the start of the year provides little change to water readings, but rainstorms and snowstorms in NE Iowa this winter have changed that.

The Iowa DNR says streamflow in NE Iowa is now above normal, while shallow groundwater conditions are good.  That's better than in Southeast Iowa, where the drought monitor shows a number of counties are still in a moderate drought.

Of course, this winter's higher than normal precipitation has its downside, as well.  The National Weather Service is calling for an above normal chance of flooding this spring on the Turkey River, Upper Iowa River and Volga River, as well as the portions of the Mississippi River in Northeast Iowa.