The deadly December tornadoes are still a tough memory for farmers in Kentucky, and USDA is reminding them of programs available to help recovery.
President Biden issued an emergency declaration for the state, which allowed FEMA to move in.
It also allowed USDA to activate the Livestock Indemnity Program, the Emergency Conservation Program to help restore fencing, and the Emergency Watershed Protection Program.
According to Greg Stone with USDA NRCS, Where watershed is impaired, and that’s usually a stream blocked with woody debris, we have the opportunity to go in there and clear those areas out, restore that watershed’s function so that when storms come in the future, that watershed can function like it’s supposed to.”
USDA says that with a disaster of this magnitude, recovery will be a long process but it does not have to be painful.
“We’re not in it for the short run, we’re in it for the long-term. Unlike some emergency activities, we don’t leave, we live among our farmers. These are our neighbors, these are our friends,” Stone adds. “We stick with them until we get the recovery completed.”
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