The U.S. Department of Agriculture declared 59 North Carolina counties as disaster areas due to the 2008 drought.

Gov. Mike Easley had asked for the disaster declaration on Oct. 3 due to excessive agricultural losses for at least one major crop.  Easley has also asked residents to continue conserving water, especially in the western part of North Carolina

"I am pleased the U.S. Department of Agriculture has approved our call to help an industry that is a significant part of the North Carolina economy," said Easley in a written statement.  "While most parts of the state have now recovered from the drought, that does not change the fact that many of our farmers suffered crop losses due to drought for two straight years, and they need help to recover."

 The counties that have been approved for disaster relief include Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Beaufort, Brunswick, Buncombe, Burke, Cabarrus, Caldwell, Caswell, Cherokee, Chowan, Clay, Cleveland, Columbus, Craven, Davidson, Davie, Duplin, Durham, Gates, Graham, Greene, Haywood, Henderson, Hyde, Jackson, Jones, Lenoir, Macon, Madison, Martin, McDowell, Mecklenburg, Nash, New Hanover, Onslow, Orange, Pender, Perquimans, Person, Pitt, Polk, Robeson, Rockingham, Rutherford, Sampson, Scotland, Stanly, Surry, Swain, Transylvania, Tyrrell, Washington , Watauga, Wayne, Wilkes, Wilson, and Yadkin.
 
The declaration allows farmers to be eligible for assistance from the U.S. Farm Service Agency, provided eligibility requirements are met.  Farmers should contact the Farm Service Agency office in their county for more information.  For county FSA information, click here.