DENVER (AP) – Gov. John Hickenlooper is asking the U.S. Department of Agriculture for disaster assistance for Colorado counties hurt by drought.

Hickenlooper’s office said Friday that the governor made his request this week, even though not all crop losses have been tallied. State officials are hoping to speed up how soon counties can get aid.

Separately, the USDA said Friday that land in its Conservation Reserve Program can be used for emergency grazing in Kiowa, Kit Carson, Logan, Phillips, Weld, Yuma, Moffat and Routt counties.

Hickenlooper also is seeking help for Mesa and Montrose counties due to freezing temperatures April 7-8. He says Mesa County had an estimated 30 percent loss in grapes, and Montrose County had an estimated 85 percent loss of sweet cherries due to the freeze.

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