Sad to See. Fertile Farmland, Now Paved Over in Billings

Yesterday I went on a drive towards Joliet to pick up some railroad ties so I took the backway to the Interstate. I drove out to 64th street and I couldn't believe my eyes. The growth and development that has taken place out there over the last two years is amazing.

Dozens of new subdivisions with hundreds of new homes. Many new businesses have popped up, warehouses, storage facilities, etc. I couldn't believe it. I remembered what it once looked like out there and it's kind of sad really. This is the most fertile productive land in the valley and it's being consumed by progress and city growth.

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Thousands of years ago the great floods dropped this rich sediment there which provided food and opportunity for agricultural interests all being paved and built over. There really is nowhere else to go either west towards Laurel, south towards Red Lodge, or east towards Huntley.

Years ago, Paul Harvey had a story that talked about how many acres of prime farmland were being consumed each day. I think he said it was 100 acres a day in the U.S.That may not seem like much but over years and years, it's alarming. We hear all these stories about not having enough food to feed people around the world well this isn't going to help.

Imagine California with millions of new people coming into the country needing a place to live out there, I'm sure they see it on a much grander scale. I'll be long gone before it becomes a crisis but the loss of farmland should be right up there.