Agricultural Disaster Declaration for Columbia County: March 4, 2011

Columbia County Receives Agricultural

Disaster Assistance Declaration

March 3, 2011 – St. Helens, OR – Columbia County farmers are eligible for disaster assistance from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for potential losses from January’s storms.

President Barack Obama declared a disaster for several Oregon counties, including Clatsop County, on February 17^th for damage from rain and landslides that occurred January 13-21, 2010. This declaration included programs from the USDA. Due to the way the USDA disaster declaration process works, farmers in counties contiguous to those counties declared are also eligible, making the declaration applicable to Columbia County.

This declaration opens up certain types of assistance for farmers, according to Derek White with Columbia County Emergency Management, whose agency deals with major emergency preparedness and response. “Farmers here are able to apply for disaster assistance from the Farm Service Agency. That assistance, if the applicant is eligible, ranges from emergency loans to supplemental revenue assistance payments”, White says.

Farmers have until October 17^th, 2011 to apply. Assistance applications must be filed at the nearest Farm Service Agency (FSA) office, which is located at:

Washington County FSA

1080 SW Baseline, Suite B2

Hillsboro, OR 97123

For questions about the program, please contact the Washington County FSA office at 503-648-3174.

For more about Columbia County Emergency Management, check out its blog at http://columbiacountyem.blogspot.com or call 503-366-3931.