Va. governor eases hay truck rules
8/06/02
Virginia Gov. Mark R. Warner toured a farm in Roanoke County on July 31 and said he’s making it easier for trucks to haul hay to drought-stricken livestock producers.
Warner also announced that he has extended a statewide drought emergency declaration. As of July 31, the USDA had made 23 Virginia localities eligible to receive assistance. Farmers in those localities can apply for low-interest loans.
“Virginia is suffering from a drought that traces back to 1999,” the governor said after touring the farm of William ‘Bill’ Poage. “I wanted to get a first-hand look at the damage from this agricultural drought, and take appropriate steps to alleviate some of the hardships faced every day by the hard-working men and women in Virginia’s farming community.”
Warner signed Executive Order No. 19 on June 26, extending a statewide emergency declared by the previous administration. Executive Order No. 31, signed July 31, temporarily waives weight,height and registration issues for some trucks transporting bales of hay.
“Drought conditions have made many farmers turn to hay much earlier than usual to feed their livestock, and they soon will be looking for supplemental suppliers,” Warner said. “This action will relax some of the existing restrictions on trucks bringing essential emergency relief supplies into and through Virginia.”
During a July 17 drought summit in Richmond, Warner said, “I have instructed my office to work with local jurisdictions to get these (declaration) requests in to the federal government as quickly as possible. The quicker we get these requests in, the quicker we can get aid for farming families.”
Henry Wood Jr. knows how devastating a drought can be.
He owns a beef and poultry operation in Buckingham County. Wood, president of the Buckingham County Farm Bureau, also grows corn for silage for the cattle, but that crop has died due to the drought. His pastures have stopped growing, forcing him to consider getting out of the beef cattle business.
“We are scheduled to sell our calves” soon, Wood said. “We may have to sell them all if we don’t get the rain or help soon.”
Adjacent to Buckingham, Cumberland County farmers “are in a desperate situation,” said Donald Bishop, the county’s Farm Bureau president. “We’ve had creeks dry up that have never dried up in the 28 years I’ve been in Cumberland.”
At the request of Warner, and with the assistance of members of Virginia’s congressional delegation, the USDA designated Brunswick, Buckingham, Cumberland, Fluvanna and Louisa counties as primary disaster areas due to severe drought.
Federal disaster declarations were issued for Goochland and Prince Edward counties earlier this year. Primary drought declarations, which authorize low-interest loans and other federal assistance, also apply to contiguous counties.
Warner also announced on July 31 that he had mailed a letter to Agriculture Secretary Ann M. Veneman requesting speedy consideration of Virginia’s remaining requests for drought disaster designations.