Gov. Bill Ritter declared a disaster emergency Wednesday for wheat farmers and grain elevator operators who are sitting on a banner harvest with no way to get it to market.

Colorado farmers produced 87 million bushels this year, the largest wheat harvest in nearly 10 years. That's up from 40 million bushels last year, said Tim Larsen, senior international marketing specialist for the Colorado Department of Agriculture.

But that is proving to be too much of a success story because grain elevator operators don't have enough rail cars to transport the wheat. With the current wheat production, 22,000 rail cars would be needed to haul the stored wheat inventory, or double the number of cars, Larsen said.

As part of the disaster emergency, the governor signed an executive order suspending the motor registration requirements for 45 days for certain carriers because farmers are facing a trucking shortage to transport the harvested wheat to other storage facilities, markets and railroad destinations.

"We have fewer trucks and a lot more grain," Kelly Spitzer, grain merchandiser for Tempel Grain in Wiley, which buys and stores grain for farmers.

Previously, farmers who owned tractor-trailers could transport crops for themselves but not for others, under Public Utilities Commission regulations.

The governor's executive order basically would permit farmers to be hired out so they could haul the wheat for grain elevator businesses.

Grain operators are concerned their wheat inventory will waste on the ground because of a shortage of certified truckers. Many trucking companies hired in the past by grain storage companies have foundered because of the drought of recent years, high fuel costs and low commodity prices.

"Over 80 percent of Colorado's wheat is ultimately exported, so our farmers know that they must be involved throughout the process to deliver their high-quality wheat to the markets of the world," Ritter said in a statement.

gutierrezh@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5204