USDA TO HELP ASSESS HURRICANE DAMAGE, PROVIDE ASSISTANCE
                                             Release No.0370.99
                                                               
                                  Andrew Kauders (202) 720-4623
                                        andrew.kauders@usda.gov
                                      Dave White (202) 720-5974
                                            Dave.White@usda.gov
          
USDA TO HELP ASSESS HURRICANE DAMAGE, PROVIDE ASSISTANCE

     WASHINGTON, September 17, 1999--Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman today
asked Pearlie Reed, chief of USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service, to
travel to North Carolina to assist with damage assessment and recovery efforts
in the wake of Hurricane Floyd.  He also announced that USDA emergency
response teams will assist the Federal Emergency Management Agency and local
officials with recovery efforts in impacted areas.  

     "The devastating effects of Hurricane Floyd from the Carolinas to New
England have left many people without food, water and shelter,"  Glickman
said.  "We are working closely with local officials to help provide immediate
assistance to fulfill those needs."  

     USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service has established a Disaster
Coordination Center in Atlanta, Georgia to help southeast coastal communities
assess and repair environmental damage that poses an imminent threat to life
or property.

     USDA is also prepared to provide food assistance for hurricane victims
in North Carolina and adjacent states, where personnel already are working
with state and county officials to determine the need for emergency
assistance.  USDA is working with state food distribution agencies and
voluntary relief organizations to provide food supplies to congregate meal
service locations where evacuees have temporarily relocated.  Additional
options for food assistance include direct distribution of food for households
where there are massive disruptions of the retail food distribution system and
providing emergency Food Stamp benefits, generally to eligible low-income
families demonstrating a loss of food and other disaster-related losses.

     "One of our top priorities is to ensure that no one goes hungry as a
result of a natural disaster," Glickman said.  "Local governments can begin
providing USDA food to victims almost immediately after a disaster.  They have
USDA food stocks on hand, and they can begin using that food right away to
help people in need."

     Hurricane Floyd may also have caused significant damage or loss to crops
and livestock producers in the affected areas.  Potential aid to farmers and
ranchers includes   

          Emergency Farm Loans: In counties declared by the President or
     designated by the Secretary as disaster areas, USDA's Farm Service
     Agency can make low-interest loans to eligible farmers to help them
     recover from the loss of production or physical losses.

          Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP): NAP applies to crops
     for which federal crop insurance is currently unavailable.  Eligible
     commodities include commercially-produced crops grown for food or fiber
     and the following specified crops: floricultural, ornamental nursery and
     Christmas tree crops, turfgrass sod, industrial crops and aquacultural
     species. 

          Emergency Conservation Program: This USDA program enables producers to
     restore land to its productive capacity by funding debris removal, fence
     rebuilding, and restoration of conservation structures.  

          In 1999, insured crop losses from Florida to Maine are estimated to be
     at least $300 million.  Most claims will be paid within 30 days after
     the losses have been adjusted.  This number is expected to grow
     significantly as hurricane losses are reported.

          The USDA Forest Service has three incident management teams on standby
     to help in recovery efforts for Hurricane Floyd.  Staff operating during
     the recovery effort will include chainsaw teams to clear roads and other areas
     closed by fallen trees, and logistics specialists involved with purchasing and
     distributing equipment and supplies, such as generators, bottled water, and
     plastic to cover homes that have lost their roofs.  One team is located at
     Dobbins Air Force Base near Atlanta, one at the Chattahoochee River National
     Recreation Area near Atlanta, and the other at Shaw Air Force Base, near
     Sumter, S.C.

           The Congress, along with the Clinton Administration, is also
currently working on emergency farm legislation which, if enacted, could offer
additional assistance to farmers and ranchers in North Carolina, as well as
other states affected by natural disasters.

           USDA also stands ready to help homeowners and others in rural
America.  Borrowers with homes financed by USDA that have been damaged by
disaster may request to have their mortgage payments suspended temporarily. 
And eligible borrowers living in communities declared Presidential Disaster
Areas may apply for housing loans with interest rates as low as 1%. 
Communities with populations of 20,000 or less that have had community
facilities destroyed or damaged by disasters may apply for assistance.  Rural
communities that have damaged water or waste water systems may also seek
assistance.  And businesses that have been damaged or destroyed may also
qualify for USDA assistance.  

           Through the Emergency Watershed Protection Program, USDA
provides financial and technical assistance to help repair damage to rivers,
streams, reservoirs, and other waterways, restore the integrity of flood
control structures, and reseed damaged areas.  Technical assistance is also
available for communities and private landowners to repair other types of
environmental damage, including beach erosion, sand dune degradation, and
farmland soil erosion.   

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