One Clint farmer said he lost nearly two-thirds of his pecan crop just this year.

Currently, 213 Texas counties, including El Paso and Hudspeth counties, have been designated for agriculture assistance related to drought, excessive heat, high winds, and wildfires.

This disaster designation makes farm operators eligible to be considered for assistance from the Farm Service Agency, or FSA, provided eligibility requirements are met. This assistance includes FSA emergency loans and the Supplemental Revenue Assistance Payments, or SURE, program.

Farmers in eligible counties have eight months from the date of a secretarial disaster declaration to apply for emergency loan assistance. FSA will consider each emergency loan application on its own merits, taking into account the extent of production losses, security available, and repayment ability.

SURE program applications for 2011 crop losses will be accepted in 2012, when the 2011 farm revenue data required by statute becomes available. The USDA Farm Service Agency in El Paso can provide affected farmers with further information:

11940 Don Haskins Dr. El Paso, TX 79936 Phone: 915-857-0351