Ellis County is among seven counties approved June 29 for emergency grazing of land enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program.

Also approved by the USDA Farm Service Agency are Graham, Lane, Trego, Osborne, Rooks and Wallace counties.

Tuesday, Governor Sam Brownback updated the state drought declarations, moving 36 Kansas counties to a drought emergency status, 55 to the drought warning status and 14 to the drought watch status.

The update includes all 105 counties either in an emergency, warning or watch status.

The action was recommended by Tracy Streeter, Director of the Kansas Water Office and Chair of the Governor’s Drought Response Team.