146 Georgia counties now designated for drought aid

The Georgia Department of Agriculture and USDA added 20 Georgia counties as primary natural disaster areas due to ongoing drought, bringing the statewide total to 146 counties.

The expanded Secretarial Disaster Declaration makes farm operators in the newly designated primary counties, as well as contiguous counties, eligible to be considered for Farm Service Agency emergency loan assistance if they meet program requirements.

The 20 newly designated primary counties are Butts, Chattooga, Clayton, Coweta, Dade, Dawson, DeKalb, Fayette, Fulton, Gordon, Habersham, Henry, Jasper, Newton, Pickens, Pike, Putnam, Rabun, Rockdale and Spalding.

The declaration also includes 31 contiguous Georgia counties and contiguous counties in Alabama, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.

“While Georgia farmers are no strangers to extreme conditions, the severe drought across our state continues to impact Georgia farm families, creating uncertainty and increasing costs at a critical time,” Tyler J Harper, Georgia agriculture commissioner, said.

Farm operators in eligible counties may be considered for USDA Farm Service Agency emergency loan assistance.

Primary counties in Georgia (20)

Butts, Chattooga, Clayton, Coweta, Dade, Dawson, DeKalb, Fayette, Fulton, Gordon, Habersham, Henry, Jasper, Newton, Pickens, Pike, Putnam, Rabun, Rockdale, Spalding

Contiguous counties in Georgia (31)

Baldwin, Banks, Bartow, Carroll, Cherokee, Cobb, Douglas, Fannin, Floyd, Forsyth, Gilmer, Greene, Gwinnett, Hall, Hancock, Heard, Jones, Lamar, Lumpkin, Meriwether, Monroe, Morgan, Murray, Stephens, Towns, Troup, Upson, Walker, Walton, White, Whitfield

Contiguous counties in adjacent states:

Alabama (3)

Cherokee, DeKalb, Jackson

North Carolina (2)

Clay, Macon

South Carolina (1)

Oconee.

Tennessee (2)

Hamilton, Marion

The expanded declaration broadens potential access to federal emergency loan assistance for Georgia farm operators affected by drought.