USDA NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE TO SPEND $500,000 IN KENTUCKY FOR STORM CLEAN-UP

Updated 02/12/2009

Lexington, Ky., February 11, 2009—Work crews from the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) have been deployed across Kentucky to help in recovery from last month’s ice storm.  NRCS in Kentucky has eight separate damage survey teams identifying sites where immediate debris removal is necessary to protect life and property.  So far, the full amount of $500,000 has been set aside to help Kentuckians recover from the storm.

More than three-quarters of Kentucky’s 120 counties have been declared disaster areas in the wake of the January 28^th storm.  While utility companies are restoring power, there is still a tremendous amount of storm debris that must be removed.  State Conservationist Tom Perrin, who leads NRCS in Kentucky, says removing the debris as soon as possible is his goal.  “If you don’t clean up the debris, you are at risk of flooding and further erosion of streambanks as the ice melts and we get more precipitation.”

NRCS, working through the Emergency Watershed Protection (EWP) program, is leading the clean-up efforts. EWP is an emergency response program that addresses threats to life and property due to damaged watersheds following natural disasters.  NRCS provides technical and financial assistance based on a Damage Survey Report that describes potential damages, environmental impacts, and suggested solutions.  EWP is funded through Congressional supplemental appropriations only after disaster strikes, as happened in this case.

Kentucky EWP Manager Jack Kuhn says the storm resulted in an urgent need statewide.  “As of Tuesday (February 10), NRCS has received 126 requests for help from 39 counties, and we expect that number to go up.”  Jessamine County is the first to qualify for EWP funds.  NRCS will spend $24,000 to stabilize streambanks, protect waterways, and remove debris in Jessamine County.

In all, more than 130 NRCS-Kentucky employees are part of the recovery effort, and many of them are still without power in their own homes.  Crews have been out in sub-freezing weather for days, collecting information and photographs of the damage.  The State Conservationist says he is very proud of their work. “NRCS employees are among the most dedicated staff in the federal government. We are doing everything we can to bring life back to normal across the state.” 

For more information about the Emergency Watershed Protection program or other NRCS programs, please visit the NRCS in Kentucky website at http://www.ky.nrcs.usda.gov.

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[PHOTOS OF DAMAGED SITES AND THE CLEAN-UP EFFORTS] 

For more information on the EWP program, please contact your local NRCS conservationist or Jacob Kuhn, NRCS EWP Program Manager, (859)-224-7371.  For more information regarding Emergency Watershed Protection, visit NRCS Web site at http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/programs/ewp/

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