Ag News

Forest hurricane damage cleanup deadline extended

by Georgia Forestry Commission

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Forest landowners who have been approved for post-Hurricane Michael cleanup assistance through a special state program have been given a bit longer for the work to be completed. The deadline to finish assignments through the Forest Debris Management Program has been extended by six months to June 30, 2020.

As of Dec. 1, GFC foresters and technicians had certified the debris management on 396 contracts covering more than 60,000 acres of clean-up. Approximately 35% of the contracts have been completed. Once the work is certified, payments are made by the Georgia Development Authority, with almost $6 million in cost share funding paid out to date.

Hurricane Michael hit southwest Georgia on Oct. 10, 2018. Then-Gov. Nathan Deal declared a state of emergency for 28 Georgia counties hardest hit by the storm, which left behind more than $762 million in damages to timberland. Landowners with more than 10 acres of forestland or a commercial orchard of any size with trees damaged by Hurricane Michael were eligible for the Forest Debris Management Program, whose application deadline was in February 2019.

For more further updates on hurricane relief measures and services of the Georgia Forestry Commission, visit www.GaTrees.org.

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