State declared disaster area over drought

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Tuesday, Oct. 19, 2004 | 9:39 a.m.

SUN CAPITAL BUREAU

CARSON CITY -- U.S. Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman Monday declared the entire state of Nevada a disaster area because of the continued drought and other problems facing farmers and ranchers.

Roger Van Valkenburg, executive director of the federal Farm Service Agency in Reno, said the designation permits farmers and ranchers to apply for low-interest loans up to $500,000 if they suffered at least a 30 percent loss in crop production.

Coincidentally, the first snow of the season fell in the Sierra Nevada Mountains west of Reno and Carson City Sunday.

Gov. Kenny Guinn on Aug. 26 had asked Veneman to declare the entire state a disaster area, saying this was the fifth straight dry year and agricultural producers have been hard hit.

Farmers in some counties suffered a 100 percent loss on certain crops because of the dry spell or the infestation of Mormon crickets or grasshoppers.

Farmers and ranchers in Clark County suffered anywhere from an 18 percent to 35 percent loss in production because of the continued drought, the farm service agency survey found.