Thanks, Pete! :)
Wisconsin is having some tough times these days, with no rain. My garden is doing great; I have a well and hoses that reach everything. The crops immediately around us are doing OK, but not as good as they normally are. Gonna be some hungry dairy cattle and broke farmers if things don’t turn around quick! At least our doofus Governor is paying attention for a change! We have 72 counties; 27 are in drought conditions. Not good:
More than two dozen Wisconsin counties now qualify for natural disaster emergency aid due to drought
As severe and extreme drought conditions continue across Wisconsin, people more than two dozen of the state’s counties are now eligible for government aid as a result of natural disaster declarations from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
A total of 27 Wisconsin counties now carry the disaster designation from USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack, either as primary or contiguous counties.
According to the USDA, the primary counties eligible include Adams, Crawford, Dodge, Grant, Green, Juneau, Lafayette, Marquette, Monroe, Richland, Rock and Vernon counties.
The aid is also available for the contiguous — or neighboring — counties of Columbia, Dane, Fond du Lac, Green Lake, Iowa, Jackson, Jefferson, La Crosse, Portage, Sauk, Walworth, Washington, Waukesha, Waushara and Wood counties.
The disaster declarations are based on the U.S. Drought Monitor’s tracking of drought conditions and whether the counties saw eight or more consecutive weeks of either severe, extreme or exceptional drought conditions during the growing season.
People in qualifying counties can get emergency credit and loans from the USDA to help cover the loss of equipment or livestock, farm reorganization, or some forms of debt refinancing. The USDA’s Farm Service Agency will review the loan requests based on the extent of losses, available security, and the ability to repay.
Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers at the state’s Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection applauded the designation opening up aid to Wisconsin’s farmers.
“We’re continuing to do everything we can to support our farmers and their families, and we appreciate the help from our federal partners and USDA Secretary Vilsack to support our state’s farmers and our local communities during the recent drought conditions,” Gov. Evers said in a statement Friday.