Noreen Hyslop photo - The flood waters that came in March left fields like this one on the north side of Highway 114 looking more like lakes than cornfields. Beginning Monday, April 28, the Farm Service Agency in Bloomfield will be taking applications for financial assistance from ag producers affected by the March floods.

Stoddard County has been approved for the Emergency Conservation Program due to the excessive rain and resulting flooding of March 17, 2008 through March 19, 2008, according to Steve Morrison, County Executive Director of the local FSA office in Bloomfield.

A 60-day sign-up period will begin on Monday, April 28, 2008 and will continue through June 26, 2008 at the Stoddard County FSA Office located at 18450 Ridgeview Lane (East of highway 25 between Bloomfield and Dexter) or call us at 573-624-5939 Ext 2.

"It is best if producers come in and make application for the program before they begin work repairing damage from the flood," Morrison explains, "since we are supposed to make a field visit before they start repairing damage."

"If producers have already repaired their damage, or are in the process of repairing the damage," he adds, "we will make a field visit to try to determine the extent of the problems they had and we could possibly get a waiver to go ahead and get assistance for their repair costs. Right now we have no money, so producers sign up with no actual guarantee of payment, however normally funds become available within 4 to 6 months."

Morrison emphasizes that those applicants who find it necessary to begin repairs before a visit should document their conditions with photographs or through other methods before repair begins.

"Then," says Morrison, "producers will need to keep close tabs on what they do and what they spend to get any cost share assistance."

Morrison makes the following points for ag producers to consider:

* This is a cost share program to put things back to the pre-disaster conditions.

* To be eligible, ag producers must require a minimum of $1000 damage or incur that much out of pocket cost to bring things back to pre-disaster conditions.

* Cost share is available for fence if producers have livestock, but the cost share would be pro rated based on the age of the fence destroyed.

* Cost share is available for debris removal if it is out of the ordinary and needed to farm the land.

* Cost share is available for grading and shaping if gullies were cut in the field or if sand or gravel was deposited over 6" deep.

* Cost share is available for repairing conservation structures such as ponds, dry hole structures, terraces or diversions, but if it was cost shared through NRCS, FSA must check to see if funds are available to redo the structure before the agency cost shares on it.

* FSA is not allowed to cost share on levy's or stream banks. Those would need to be done by NRCS if an Emergency Watershed Program is approved.

* To qualify, land must be used to produce agricultural commodities.

Morrison encourages anyone who is unsure as to whether or not they would qualify for the program described to stop by the agency's Bloomfield office to allow a representative to review specifics about their case.