History of Agriculture in the American West

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Farming has become one of the most important businesses. It became very profitable as far as it took fewer workers to produce a given amount of food as time passed. The use of newly invented machinery increased the level and efficiency of agriculture. The use of reapers, iron plows, tractors, threshers facilitated the work of farmers and increased their productivity. The introduction of electric and gasoline-powered machinery, the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides made agriculture one of the main sources of income for West America.

In the 1960s the American government decided to produce surplus food to feed the poor. Farm production produced more and more goods increasing its efficiency in the decades after World War ll in such a way that the government realized that it was enough and cut their farming material support.

It should be noted that the number of farms was reduced due to the Rural Electrification Administration (REA) established in 1935 (Fite). Although the number of farms was reduced, their efficiency was increased. A great number of lands were in the hands of not so many farmers. It became possible to take care of more lands and produce more goods in the same period of time. These large corporate farms were capitalized with huge investments.

Quantitative and expensive machinery was supplied to these farms. Farms became a sort of business with a great amount of capital and good management. Thousands of small farms became unprofitable as far as it was impossible to compete with large farms. Although the number of farms and people involved in agriculture reduced sharply after World War ll, agriculture continued to be one of the main profitable sources for the American economy (Fite).

Lack of rainfall is the main disadvantage of the American West climate. The life of every farmer as well as every citizen of West America depends on water. The way out has been found and a lot of dams were constructed to solve this problem. There are a lot of advantages of constructing big dams on such rivers as Missouri, Columbia, Colorado, and other major rivers. The main advantages are the possibility to support the citizens with water and to use falling water for hydroelectric power.

Dams are very valuable for agricultural sectors as far as they supply farms with water. More than that, these dams provide still water for wild animals and attract tourists as the dams may be used for water sports and other activities and entertainment. As for the disadvantages, these dams destroy forests and wildlife. The original river is diverted because of the construction and the down-river may be changed in course (Water in the West).

Dams are very expensive to be constructed and not every country of West America may allow supplying the construction of such dams. During the construction of large dams, a lot of factors should be taken into accounts such as environment, resettlement, rehabilitation, sedimentary issues, socio-economic issues, and safety aspects (Water in the West). Although large dams facilitate the life of farmers and other citizens of West America, their construction causes a lot of irreparable consequences that also should be taken into account.

From the above said, we may conclude that the level of agriculture in the American West increased in the decades after World War ll due to the development of electronic machinery and chemical fertilizers used in farming and the construction of dams supplying farms with water.

Works Cited

Fite, Gilbert. Farming. Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History & Culture, 2000. Web.

Water in the West. Bureau of Reclamation Historic Dams and Water Projects, 2001. Web.

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