Usually, in October, we also see acres of lush green grass and the vivid yellow of canola crops. But this year, what little grass we have could hardly be described as lush and those canola fields are, paddock by paddock, being turned into hay by farmers desperate to save something from a crop that is dying from lack of water.

The sad reality of those gorgeous clear sunny skies is that they mean drought is increasing its grip on our region.

This week Wagga Boat club commodore Mick Henderson spoke to The Daily Advertiser about his fears that another hot, dry summer - which is exactly what the Bureau of Meteorology is predicting - will see Lake Albert dry up.

As Mr Henderson pointed out, it's not unprecedented. In 2010, for example, thousands of fish died as the lake receded and dried out.

For those of us who live in urban neighbourhoods, news that our lake could dry out should serve as something like the proverbial canary in a coalmine.

We cannot afford to gloss over the fact that drought is already a reality for many in our region.

Stephanie Stanhope, the current NSW president of the Country Women's Association, was in Wagga this week as part of a series of trips she is making to branches around the state.

Ms Stanhope's home in near Bega and, she says, conditions there are "horrendous".

At her own home, she's been buying water to fill empty rainwater tanks and her grass is long dead.

But she is also seeing for herself how fiercely the drought is impacting not just farmers, but whole rural communities, across the state.

Ms Stanhope is worried that when it comes to primary industry, governments just don't get it.

The reality is, farming isn't just another business. It's a business that feeds a nation.

Without our farmers - whether they are growing wheat, raising cattle or any one of a myriad of other options - Australia would become totally reliant on imported foods.

Not only would that decimate our economy with billions of dollars in lost export earnings, but it leaves us at the mercy of overseas standards when it comes to the conditions in which our food is produced.

Of course, in regional Australia farmers and small businesses also go hand-in-hand.

In small towns, the major stores - be they supermarkets or rural suppliers - rely on farmers and vice versa.

The CWA has, in recent weeks, been asking the state government for a change in the type of drought assistance being delivered by government.

"In early August we wrote to the NSW Government seeking support for rural communities and small business. We've outlined a full policy proposal and a suite of options to assist small business suffering because of the drought," Ms Stanhope has said.

"Unfortunately, the government has chosen not to implement further support for drought-affected rural small businesses, relying instead on a recent infrastructure announcement to 'fast track' regional infrastructure projects as the answer to much-needed rural stimulus during one of the worst droughts on record.

"While welcome, we don't see this as meaningful drought relief and it is not what communities are telling us they need. What they are telling us they need is real and tangible help, delivered to their businesses directly, in order to help them survive and support their communities into the future.

"We're not sure what the state government is waiting for - the time to assist is now. There are farmers facing their second or third year of failed or no crops. There are rural businesses that rely on primary production, and vice-versa. If these businesses can't survive the drought - and many have already closed - we will watch our rural industries and communities decline in front of our eyes."

Incidentally, the CWA in NSW is currently assisting farmers and farming-based contractors with the distribution of more than $13 million in grants for household support from donations, as well as federal funding.

The CWA members are living the drought. They know exactly what's happening and how real assistance can be delivered to help farmers get through the tough times.

We need to listen to the people who know what their communities need.