Ag News
Drought intensifies across Georgia
Posted on Apr 22, 2026 at 13:02 PM
Drought conditions have worsened for most of the state in the past two weeks, but much-needed rain could be on the way. In the April 18 installment of the Climate and Agriculture in the Southeast blog, UGA Climatologist Pam Knox wrote that a rain system will move into Alabama and Georgia this weekend, though she predicted the hardest-hit drought areas in South Georgia would be largely bypassed.
“The prospects for week 2 look good, with all of the region likely to get more rain than normal,” Knox wrote. “After that, chances return to normal for most of the region for the next two weeks.”
According to the Georgia Forestry Commission, Jan. – March was the 8th driest first quarter on record dating back to 1895.
The April 14 U.S. Drought Monitor report, released April 16, showed every county in Georgia with at least some portion under severe drought, the third-worst rating according to the National Drought Mitigation Center. Of Georgia’s 159 counties, 125 are in the two driest categories – extreme drought and exceptional drought. The most significant drought conditions – exceptional drought – were present in 42 counties in the Coastal Plain of South and Southeast Georgia.
On April 21, the USDA issued a natural disaster designation for 126 Georgia counties due to drought conditions, making producers in those counties, as well as producers in 23 contiguous counties, eligible for emergency loans, which can be used to meet various recovery needs including the replacement of essential items such as equipment or livestock, reorganization of a farming operation, or to refinance certain debts. FSA will review the loans based on the extent of losses, security available, and repayment ability. The application deadline to apply for aid under this designation is Dec. 10.
According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, these counties suffered from a drought intensity value during the growing season of 1) D2 Drought-Severe for 8 or more consecutive weeks or 2) D3 Drought-Extreme or D4 Drought-Exceptional.
Primary Counties Eligible: Appling, Atkinson, Bacon, Baker, Banks, Barrow, Ben Hill, Berrien, Bibb, Bleckley, Brantley, Brooks, Bryan, Bulloch, Burke, Calhoun, Camden, Candler, Catoosa, Charlton, Chatham, Chattahoochee, Clarke, Clay, Clinch, Coffee, Colquitt, Columbia, Cook, Crawford, Crisp, Decatur, Dodge, Dooly, Dougherty, Early, Echols, Effingham, Elbert, Emanuel, Evans, Fannin, Forsyth, Franklin, Gilmer, Glascock, Glynn, Grady, Greene, Gwinnett, Hall, Hancock, Harris, Hart, Houston, Irwin, Jackson, Jeff Davis, Jefferson, Jenkins, Johnson, Lamar, Lanier, Laurens, Lee, Liberty, Lincoln, Long, Lowndes, Lumpkin, McDuffie, McIntosh, Macon, Madison, Marion, Meriwether, Miller, Mitchell, Monroe, Montgomery, Morgan, Murray, Muscogee, Oconee, Oglethorpe, Peach, Pierce, Pulaski, Quitman, Randolph, Schley, Screven, Seminole, Stephens, Stewart, Sumter, Talbot, Taliaferro, Tattnall, Taylor, Telfair, Terrell, Thomas, Tift, Toombs, Towns, Treutlen, Troup, Turner, Twiggs, Union, Upson, Walker, Walton, Ware, Warren, Washington, Wayne, Webster, Wheeler, White, Whitfield, Wilcox, Wilkes, Wilkinson, and Worth
Contiguous Counties Also Eligible: Baldwin, Butts, Chattooga, Cherokee, Coweta, Dade, Dawson, DeKalb, Floyd, Fulton, Gordon, Habersham, Heard, Jasper, Jones, Newton, Pickens, Pike, Putnam, Rabun, Richmond, Rockdale, and Spalding.
On farmers.gov, the Disaster Assistance Discovery Tool, Disaster Assistance-at-a-Glance fact sheet, and Loan Assistance Tool can help you determine program or loan options. To file a Notice of Loss or to ask questions about available programs, contact your local USDA Service Center.
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