By Scout Nelson
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated Meade County, South Dakota, as a natural disaster area because of drought conditions. The designation gives affected producers access to emergency assistance through the Farm Service Agency (FSA).
The disaster designation is intended to help farmers and ranchers recover from losses caused by severe drought. Eligible producers can apply for FSA emergency loans to support their farming operations during the recovery period.
Emergency loans can help producers replace essential property and livestock damaged or lost because of a natural disaster. The funds may also be used to reorganize a farming operation or refinance certain eligible debts.
FSA reviews each loan application based on several factors. These include the level of losses suffered by the producer, available security, and the ability to repay the loan.
The designation is based on drought conditions recorded during the growing season. The affected counties experienced either D2 severe drought for at least eight consecutive weeks or D3 extreme drought or D4 exceptional drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.
Meade County is the primary county included in the USDA disaster designation. Six neighboring South Dakota counties are also eligible for assistance because they are contiguous to the primary disaster area.
The eligible contiguous counties are Butte, Haakon, Lawrence, Pennington, Perkins and Ziebach.
Producers affected by the disaster should review FSA requirements and determine whether they qualify for emergency loan assistance. The application deadline for this disaster designation is March 29, 2027.
Photo Credit: gettyimages-jj-gouin
Categories: South Dakota, Government & Policy, Weather