Twenty-Four Wisconsin Counties Designated as Disaster Areas by USDA
Significant losses and damages done to crops in 2013 have resulted in the designation of natural disaster areas in the state of Wisconsin
Twenty-four Wisconsin counties have been designated as natural disaster areas by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) due to significant losses and damages done to crops this season, according to a recent Wisconsin Ag Connection article.
The combined effects of excessive rain, snow, and various series of thawing and freezing, resulted in winterkill across parts of Wisconsin which occurred between January and May of this year. The counties that are being affected are largely in the west-central and eastern parts of the state.
The official USDA designations came after a request was made by Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker in June based on the poor conditions, according to a Watertown Daily Times article. Walker says, “We appreciate the quick response to the conditions affecting Wisconsin farmers. A freezing, thawing and refreezing cycle, coupled with excessive rain and snow, resulted in crop losses ranging from 30 to 70 percent in some areas. We appreciate the continued attention and assistance to help our farmers deal with crop losses.”
As a result of the natural disaster declarations, farmers in these counties may now be eligible for low interest emergency loans from the USDA’s Farm Service Agency. Producers in these counties now have eight months to apply for loans to help cover part of their losses.
Weather conditions have been unfavorable for crops across most of the Midwest this year, and according to these reports, conditions in Wisconsin have become poor enough to designate 24 counties as natural disaster areas.