Press Releases
December 3, 2008
Delegation Urges Disaster Declaration for North Dakota Counties
Washington – In a letter to Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer, Senators Kent Conrad and Byron Dorgan and Congressman Earl Pomeroy today made the case that a timely disaster declaration is needed to help North Dakota’s farmers and ranchers recover from losses due to heavy rain and flooding in the Red River Valley and severe drought in the western half of the state. The delegation urged Secretary Schafer to quickly approve the disaster declaration request for affected counties in North Dakota.
Producers in western North Dakota estimate that their yield was down by nearly half, with a number of producers reporting a total crop loss. Additionally, area producers report that 25 percent of the sugar beet crop was left frozen in wet ground and thousands of acres of soybeans could not be harvested because of late season rains.
North Dakota's congressional delegation wrote to Secretary Schafer, “North Dakota’s farm and ranch families have suffered substantial losses of crop and forage production this year as a result of adverse weather conditions…these dual disasters have left many producers in difficult financial shape.”
Thirty-nine counties in North Dakota are being considered for a primary Secretarial Disaster Designation.
Of those 39 counties, 34 have reported a 30 percent or greater loss on at least one major crop. Producers in Secretarial designated and contiguous counties will be eligible for disaster assistance through programs the delegation included in the 2008 Farm Bill.
The delegation also urged Secretary Schafer to declare North Dakota’s remaining 14 counties contiguous disaster areas, allowing farmers and ranchers in those areas to receive emergency assistance.
The delegation’s letter supplements the formal disaster declaration request made by Governor Hoeven last week. North Dakota’s leaders based this request on damage assessment reports compiled by North Dakota’s Farm Service Agency and the state’s USDA Emergency Board.
The delegation secured a $3.8 billion agriculture disaster package in the Farm Bill to provide a federal response to farm disasters that would be both timely and reliable.
Agriculture is the largest segment of North Dakota’s economy, with one in every five North Dakotans earning their living off the land.
The Honorable Ed Schafer
Secretary
U.S. Department of Agriculture
1400 Independence Avenue SW
Washington, DC 20250
Dear Secretary Schafer:
We are writing to urge your approval of the State of North Dakota’s request for a Secretarial Disaster Designation in areas of North Dakota affected by adverse weather.
As you are aware, North Dakota’s farm and ranch families have suffered substantial losses of crop and forage production this year as a result of adverse weather conditions. That is why we are urging you to approve the request that 39 North Dakota counties receive a Secretarial Disaster Designation as primary disaster counties. In addition, we ask that North Dakota’s 14 remaining counties be declared contiguous disaster areas as requested by the state. We have seen higher than average rainfall in Eastern North Dakota, while Western North Dakota suffered from drought-like conditions earlier this year. These dual disasters have left many producers in difficult financial shape.
Designating these counties as primary or contiguous disaster areas allows them to be eligible for new disaster assistance programs in the 2008 Farm Bill. Without this designation, it makes it more difficult for a producer to obtain assistance under these programs.
Thank you for your immediate attention to this important issue. If we can provide additional information to help expedite your decision to designate all eligible North Dakota counties as primary or contiguous disaster areas, please do not hesitate to contact us.
