FORT COLLINS — CSU agricultural economists are surveying farmers and ranchers to better understand the effects of this year's drought on Colorado agriculture and to design effective management tools for dry times ahead.

CSU said Friday that its survey project is funded with $35,000 from the Colorado Water Conservation Board and the Colorado Department of Agriculture.

The university is asking farmers and ranchers to complete the questionnaire by Jan. 1 so economists may begin compiling data shortly after the first of the year. Colorado producers may complete the online questionnaire by visiting http://tinyurl.com/CSU-drought.

CSU economists are particularly interested in responses from an estimated 6,000 Colorado farms and ranches with annual income surpassing $100,000. These producers are at the core of the state's agricultural industry, which contributes some $40 billion annually to the state's economy, according to the Colorado Department of Agriculture.

"We really want to take the temperature of what this drought has meant to farmers, ranchers and rural communities," said James Pritchett, associate professor in the CSU Department