Federal agriculture officials declared a natural disaster in seven Massachusetts counties where farmers are still recovering from heavy rains and floods last month that caused at least $15 million in damages across 2,700 acres, the Healey administration said Tuesday afternoon.
The declaration from the U.S. Department of Agriculture immediately opens up low-interest loans and the option to refinance existing loans for farmers that experienced losses caused by excessive rain and flooding from July 9 through July 16.
A disaster was declared in Berkshire, Bristol, Franklin, Hampden, Hampshire, Norfolk, and Worcester Counties. Bordering counties — Dukes, Middlesex, Plymouth, and Suffolk — are also eligible for the loans, including those in Connecticut, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont. More information is available online.
Farmers in Massachusetts “should know that their government has their backs,” Gov. Maura Healey said.
“Our administration is committed to using every option to deliver relief to farmers, including state aid, the launch of the Massachusetts Farm Resiliency Fund, and additional efforts to secure federal assistance for municipalities and farms,” Healey said in a statement.
A spokesperson for the USDA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources estimated that 110 farms and 2,700 acres were left soaked and damaged by the severe weather.
“We expect those numbers to continue to grow,” said MDAR Commissioner Ashely Randle.
Randle previously told the Herald that federal loans may add additional debt to farmers’ bottom line without the ability to bring in more income for the rest of the year given the severe weather came just before harvesting season.
Members of the state’s congressional delegation had called on USDA officials to declare a disaster in Western Massachusetts counties.
Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey and U.S. Reps. Jim McGovern and Richard Neal wrote a letter in July to U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Thomas Vilsack and Farm Service Agency Administrator Zach Ducheneaux urging for the disaster designation.
In a statement Tuesday, Neal said the farming community plays a prominent role in the regional economy of Western Massachusetts.
“This disaster declaration will quickly mobilize emergency assistance to Western Massachusetts farmers, providing critical federal funds that will allow them to continue covering monthly expenses in the wake of this disaster,” he said in a statement provided by the Healey administration.
McGovern said it was “devastating” to walk flooded fields last month. The disaster declaration is an “important step,” he said.
“But it’s the first of many we need to take to deal with the challenges our farmers are facing — especially as they build more resilient farms in the face of climate change,” he said in a statement provided by the Healey administration.
More state aid for farmers is on the way.
The Legislature included $20 million in farm relief in a supplemental spending bill sent to Healey late Monday night. The governor signed the bill Tuesday morning.
The money is reserved “to support mitigation costs associated with natural disasters that occurred in 2023,” according to the bill text. That includes “mitigation costs” for farms impacted by natural disasters. The Executive Office of Administration and Finance and the Department of Agricultural Resources are tasked with distributing the funds.
Healey announced last month the “Massachusetts Farm Resiliency Fund,” a fundraiser administered by United Way of Central Massachusetts that she said was the best way to provide direct relief to farmers.
At a July 20 event in Easthampton, Healey said she was “not holding” her breath for federal relief.
“If people think that there’s going to be a whole bunch of money coming from the federal government this way, I’m not holding my breath, none of us are and I want to be really clear about that,” Healey said.
Materials from the State House News Service were used in this report.