USDA Designates More Disaster Counties

WASHINGTON - Oct 13/04 - SNS -- The USDA designated counties in California, Minnesota, Nevada and Texas as primary agricultural disaster areas.

El Dorado, Fresno and San Luis Obispo Counties in California are designated as primary disaster areas due to damages and losses caused by drought that occurred on various dates between July 1, 2003, and June 30, 2004. Also eligible because they are contiguous are Alpine, Amador, Inyo, Kern, Kings, Madera, Merced, Mono, Monterey, Placer, Sacramento, San Benito, Santa Barbara and Tulare Counties.

In Minnesota, 29 counties are designated as primary disaster areas due to damages and losses caused by frost that occurred from August 20, 2004, and continuing. These counties are:

	Aitkin		Douglas		Pennington
	Becker		Hubbard		Pine
	Beltrami	Isanti		Polk
	Carlton		Itasca		Red Lake
	Cass		Kanabec		Roseau
	Chippewa 	Kittson 	St. Louis
	Chisago 	Koochiching 	Swift
	Clearwater 	Mahnomen 	Todd
	Cook 		Marshall 	Wadena
	Crow Wing	Norman

Also eligible because they are contiguous are Anoka, Big Stone, Clay, Grant, Kandiyohi, Lac Qui Parle, Lake, Lake of the Woods, Mille Lacs, Morrison, Otter Tail, Pope, Renville, Sherburne, Stearns, Stevens, Washington and Yellow Medicine.

The entire state of Nevada is designated as a primary disaster area due to damages and losses caused by drought and related insect infestations that occurred from Jan. 1, 2004, and continuing.

Swisher County in Texas is designated as a primary disaster area due to damages and losses caused by drought that from April 1, 2003, and continuing. Also eligible because they are contiguous are Armstrong, Briscoe, Castro, Floyd, Hale and Randall Counties.