Tennessee Governor Requests Federal Disaster Assistance After Drought

Source from:  tobaccojournal.com Sep 25, 2008 10/17/2008

Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen has requested a federal designation of agricultural disaster for 28 counties in Tennessee to help farmers who have suffered crop and livestock losses as a result of persistent drought conditions. The counties include: Anderson, Bledsoe, Blount, Bradley, Cannon, Coffee, Fentress, Franklin, Grainger, Greene, Grundy, Hamblen, Henry, Jefferson, Knox, Lake, McMinn, Meigs, Monroe, Morgan, Overton, Pickett, Polk, Scott, Unicoi, Warren, Washington and Weakley. A designation from USDA would allow qualifying farmers to receive federal farm disaster assistance that could help them manage losses and plan for next year. Bredesen made the request in a letter to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer. "Farmers in these areas have suffered two and sometimes three years in a row of difficult growing seasons due to lingering drought conditions," said Bredesen. "Any time you have this kind of long term impact to agriculture, it makes it doubly hard for farmers to keep farming and make ends meet. We want to ensure that our state's farmers have access to any assistance that will help them manage through this agricultural disaster." Farmers in these counties have reported crop losses, as much as 35 to 70 percent, due to below normal rainfall, low water levels and a cumulative rainfall deficit that has carried over from last year. In some areas of the state the rainfall deficit for the year is 12 inches or more and portions of East Tennessee remain under extreme drought conditions. The lack of rainfall has affected major crops including corn, soybeans, tobacco and hay, as well as some nursery and fruit and vegetable crops. According to state Agriculture Commissioner Ken Givens, other counties are expected to request federal agricultural assistance in the coming days as the full extent of this year's drought is realized during harvest season. Once a county is approved, eligible farmers can apply for a variety of federal farm disaster programs including supplemental farm revenue payments, livestock assistance and low-interest emergency loans through their local USDA Farm Service Agency office. Enditem