On Friday, Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. announced he will ask the secretary of agriculture to declare Utah a federal disaster area - a move that would assist farmers and ranchers devastated by the recent Milford Flat, Neola North and Salt Creek wildfires. Together, the blazes charred 450,000 acres of public and private rangelands.

Nephi rancher Jim Ockey said he will be forced to sell off his 60 cattle because he cannot afford to buy hay or repair fences to keep the herd from roaming onto public roads.

"It's emotional to lose what you've spent your lifetime building," he said.

Ockey is among 90 farmers and ranchers who may not be able to stay in business, said Agriculture Commissioner Leonard Blackham at a Friday news conference.

More than 7,000 cattle have been displaced by wildfires and need feed or pastures where they can graze. About 200 more head and 70 sheep were killed in the blazes, Blackham said, "and the fire season is not over yet."

Under a disaster declaration, farmers and ranchers in drought-stricken or burned-out areas would qualify for low-interest loans. They also could graze their livestock on tens of thousands of acres of taxpayer-supported lands now held in reserve.

By September, some of the reserve lands could be opened for grazing, said Bruce Richeson, Utah executive director of the Farm Service Agency, which oversees the reserve program.

In addition, farmers and ranchers in burned-out areas may qualify for a one-time payment of $11 per acre for taking their land out of production, allowing charred lands to regenerate. The incentive, however, is limited to 2,500 acres per farmer with a sign-up window of Aug. 1 to Aug. 14.

Utah Farm Bureau CEO Randy Parker blasted unnamed "radical environmental groups" that have gone to court to halt or reduce chaining to clear land of growth and grazing, allowing "encroaching and expansion of invasive species like pinyon-juniper and cheatgrass that are now fueling Utah's wildfires."

But Selma Sierra, with the Bureau of Land Management, said the fires are an opportunity for public and private groups "to come together" in reseeding efforts that will result "in bringing vegetation that will be resistant to fires."

Utah farmers and ranchers have been hard-hit, starting with killing frosts that have destroyed crops as late as June.

Insect infestations and now flooding on charred lands also are exacting tolls, along with persistent and severe drought conditions, said Commissioner Blackham.

Twenty-five of the state's 29 counties are suffering from extreme drought. The only counties not suffering from drought are Sevier, Grand, Wayne and Daggett, but those areas also qualify for relief because they are surrounded by drought-stricken counties.

By next month, said Blackham, "I wouldn't be surprised if these four counties are experiencing the same problems of the other 25 counties."