Gov. Christine Gregoire asks federal government to add 14 counties to drought disaster area

For Immediate Release: October 7, 2005

OLYMPIA � Oct. 7, 2005 � Gov. Christine Gregoire today asked U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns to designate an additional 14 Washington counties as farm disaster areas due to damages caused by this year�s drought.

�Our farmers need help to recover from their economic losses and begin to replant for next season,� Gov. Gregoire said. �More Washingtonians are employed by agriculture than any other industry in this state. This is about our economic vitality. We need to provide the assistance and support to help folks pull through.�

In March, Gov. Gregoire declared a statewide drought emergency based on the extremely low snow pack in the mountains and record-low flows in rivers across the state. She successfully secured $12 million from the state legislature for a multi-agency response. The governor has been closely monitoring drought developments around the state.

�It isn�t enough just to pray for rain,� said Gov. Gregoire. �These are the times when our farmers need the full support of the state and federal government. We depend on them for every meal we eat and now, because of the drought, they are depending on us.�

In September, conditions in Garfield, Whitman and Pacific counties reached the minimum threshold to qualify as a federal disaster area and the governor immediately sought that designation in a letter to Secretary Johanns. The U.S. Department of Agriculture is considering the request.

The governor�s new request includes eight eastern Washington counties�Benton, Chelan, Columbia, Douglas, Franklin, Kittitas, Klickitat, Lincoln, Walla Walla and Yakima�and four western Washington counties�Clark, Cowlitz, Skamania, and Wahkiakum. Conditions in these counties have recently reached the federal threshold as the dry summer has led to low fall crop yields.

The drought declaration, if approved, will provide low-interest Farm Service Agency loans from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to cover production and farm property losses to farmers in the affected counties. In addition, the United States Small Business Administration will also declare an associated economic injury disaster and provide low interest loans to other businesses affected by the crop losses.

# # #