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Area counties in drought disaster declaration
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Special to the News
Updated: Sep 14, 2011, 3:22 PM
Published: Sep 14, 2011, 3:23 PM

Nearly all counties in Georgia, including Bryan, have been declared an agricultural disaster area due to ongoing drought and excessive heat.
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack determined last week that 150 Georgia counties suffered production losses great enough to warrant a secretarial natural disaster designation.
Producers in the designated counties are now eligible to be considered for Farm Service Agency emergency loans and the Supplemental Revenue Assistance Program, which was approved as part of the Food, Conservation and Energy Act of 2008.
“I am grateful for Secretary Vilsack’s timely response on this important request for our state,” Gov. Nathan Deal said.
“With this designation, farmers and their businesses will qualify for much-needed relief.
“It is my hope that this aid will relieve some of the burden this drought has caused the No. 1 industry in our state.”
The designation was made following a letter from Deal to Vilsack seeking aid for the drought conditions.
“This is good news for farmers in our state,” said U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee.
“Our producers battle severe weather conditions year after year, and this designation will help ensure that they can recover from the severe drought conditions.
“The disaster designation is the first step in that recovery process, and I appreciate Gov. Deal’s hard work on this issue.”
The state’s other nine counties have been named contiguous disaster counties and also qualify for some aid.
Farmers have eight months to apply for emergency loan assistance. FSA will consider each application on its own merit by taking into account the extent of losses, security available and repayment ability. 
For more information, visit http://disaster.fsa.usda.gov.

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Record April boosts Savannah's container trade at port
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The Port of Savannah moved 356,700 20-foot equivalent container units in April, an increase of 7.1 percent. - photo by Provided
Bryan County News
Updated: May 23, 2018, 1:59 AM
Published: May 23, 2018, 2:00 AM

The Georgia Ports Authority's busiest April ever pushed its fiscal year-to-date totals to more than 3.4 million 20-foot equivalent container units (TEUs), an increase of 8.8 percent, or 280,000 TEUs, compared to the first 10 months of fiscal 2017.

"We're on track to move more than 300,000 TEUs in every month of the fiscal year, which will be a first for the authority," said GPA Executive Director Griff Lynch. "We're also anticipating this to be the first fiscal year for the Port of Savannah to handle more than 4 million TEUs."

April volumes reached 356,700 20-foot equivalent container units, up 7.1 percent or 23,700 units. As the fastest growing containerport in the nation, the Port of Savannah has achieved a compound annual growth rate of more than 5 percent a year over the past decade.

"As reported in the recent economic impact study by UGA's Terry College of Business, trade through Georgia's deepwater ports translates into jobs, higher incomes and greater productivity," said GPA Board Chairman Jimmy Allgood. "In every region of Georgia, employers rely on the ports of Savannah and Brunswick to help them become more competitive on the global stage."

To strengthen the Port of Savannah's ability to support the state's future economic growth, the GPA Board approved $66 million in terminal upgrades, including $24 million for the purchase of 10 additional rubber-tired gantry cranes.  

"The authority is committed to building additional capacity ahead of demand to ensure the Port of Savannah remains a trusted link in the supply chain serving Georgia and the Southeast," Lynch said.

The crane purchase will bring the fleet at Garden City Terminal to 156 RTGs. The new cranes will support three new container rows, which the board approved in March. The additional container rows will increase annual capacity at the Port of Savannah by 150,000 TEUs.

The RTGs will work over stacks that are five containers high and six deep, with a truck lane running alongside the stacks. Capable of running on electricity, the cranes will have a lift capacity of 50 metric tons.

The cranes will arrive in two batches of five in the first and second quarters of calendar year 2019.

 Also at Monday's meeting, the GPA Board elected its officers, with Jimmy Allgood as chairman, Will McKnight taking the position of vice chairman and Joel Wooten elected as the next secretary/treasurer.

For more information, visit gaports.com, or contact GPA Senior Director of Corporate Communications Robert Morris at (912) 964-3855 or rmorris@gaports.com.

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