Farmers, Ranchers, Growers May Be Eligible For Assistance As State Agriculture Economic Losses Range To $242 Million
Release Date: October 12, 2002
Release Number: 1435-35
» More Information on Louisiana Tropical Storm Isidore
Baton Rouge, LA -- Preliminary figures of crop damage from Tropical Storm Isidore and Hurricane Lili indicate a possible loss as high as $242 million, a Louisiana State University official said today. The level of losses depends upon weather conditions over the crop harvest period that has been extended by the disaster, he said.
Both federal and state emergency management leaders immediately said that sugar cane, rice and cotton growers, plus other farmers and ranchers whose crops were damaged by the storms, might be eligible for immediate recovery assistance.
Carlos Mitchell, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) official who oversees all federal assistance programs in the disaster areas, cited three general areas in which help may be available now:
- Disaster housing, rental assistance and funding for minor home repairs
to make a damaged dwelling habitable.
- Funds to cover vital needs resulting from the disasters, but which
can't be met through other government or volunteer agency sources.
- Unemployment aid, which requires applicants to contact a state or local unemployment agency first for proper documentation or assistance information.
State Coordinating Officer Art Jones said low-interest loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) are available for businesses that rely on farmers, ranchers and the like.
Loans to homeowners, renters and non-agriculture business owners for the repair, replacement or rebuilding of storm-damaged property are available, he said.
According to LSU's early estimates of damage to crops, the four principal
losses were to sugarcane, with a low-to-high loss range of $101 million
to $202 million; cotton, with low-to-high loss estimates of $12.2 million
to $25.5 million; rice, with a
low-to-high loss range of $6.2 million to $8.8 million; and soybeans,
with low-to-high estimates of $3 million and $6.1 million.
An SBA spokesperson said emergency loans also are available for shrimpers
and commercial fishermen who suffered economic losses prior to the storms.
Those losses would have resulted from an extensive cold front reaching
far into the coastal areas of southern Louisiana in the May 13-23, 2002
period.
In all, the numerous agriculture and aquiculture resources combine for an annual impact on Louisiana's economy that surpasses $2.8 billion and employs 31,400 people. The disaster's economic injury, now being compiled, can be given only in raw estimates.
The sugar cane industry, one of the larger agricultural enterprises, has an annual production totaling $378 million and a sales value after being refined that boosts the figure to more than $600 million, a Louisiana State University official said.
Nearly half a million acres are planted in sugar cane. Storm losses could range from an estimated 25 percent level in most areas to as much as 60 percent in others, a state farm official said. The figures are only estimates "from a distance," he cautioned.
Flooded roads and power outages have restricted efforts to get more specific details on damage done to coastal crops such as sugar, shellfish and rice, the state official said.
Rice production currently is valued in excess of $166 million a year, cotton at more than $266 million, and the largest of all, forestry, at $905 million. Damage to trees that were wind-sprung by the hurricane is still being estimated, as is the loss total for cotton that he described as "rotting in the fields from too much rain.
Following is a summary of the state's most recent major crop production:
- Forestry, which includes saw logs, pulpwood, pine straw, seedlings, and even Christmas trees - $903 million;
- Cotton, including lint and seed - $266 million;
- Fruits (strawberries, peaches, pears, figs and the like) - $18 million;
- Feed grains (sorghum, oats, field corn) - $136 million;
- Greenhouse vegetables (tomatoes, cucumbers) - $2 million;
- Hay (alfalfa, grass) - $33 million:
- Nursery crops (fruit and nut trees, woody ornaments) - $104 million;
- Peanuts - $1 million;
- Rice - $166 million;
- Sugar cane - $377 million;
- Commercial vegetables - $41 million; and
- Wheat - $23 million.
No estimates are available yet on losses to Louisiana's income tax revenues from fish and wildlife resources, which total more than $6.9 million a year. A list of the growing fish and wildlife resources and their economic effect on the state is shown in the following:
- Non-consumptive fish and wildlife recreation, 6,800 employed - $512 million;
- Recreational boating, with 26,600 people employed - $3 billion; and
- Commercial fisheries, 31,488 jobs - $2.8 billion.
Perhaps worthy of note is that the state also has an alligator harvest with an economic impact of $23 million.
For persons who want to speak directly with officials of the state regarding agriculture or aquiculture matters, the telephone number for the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry is 225-922-9254. The U.S. Department of Agriculture number is 225-757-7766, and the U.S. Farm Service Agency is 225-389-0405.
Last Modified: Thursday, 24-Jul-2003 17:09:37