USDA to commit $5.8 million to fight Asian citrus psyllid in California
USDA to commit $5.8 million to fight Asian citrus psyllid in California
Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer announced Friday, Nov. 21, the commitment of $5.8 million in funding to stop the spread of Asian citrus psyllid -- a small insect that feeds on citrus plants and trees -- in California.
The Asian citrus psyllid can carry citrus greening, which is one of the more devastating citrus diseases in the world. The funding will be used to stop the spread of the pest in California before it seriously damages citrus production in the state, which at $1.1 billion ranks it second in citrus revenue behind Florida.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service is working cooperatively with the California Department of Food & Agriculture on an Asian citrus psyllid program. The funds will be used for intensive surveillance for Asian citrus psyllid and citrus greening disease, also known as Huanglongbing. Funding also will support quarantine regulations, as well as outreach and education about the pest to California's nursery owners, the citrus industry and the public.
Larry Hawkins, a USDA spokesperson, said that the $5.8 million will be divided between field operations for APHIS and the CDFA. Some $900,000 in federal money will be allocated to APHIS for field operations and regulatory activity.
A cooperative agreement between APHIS and CDFA accounts for two areas of funding. Some $4.47 million will be used for survey and regulation work in San Diego County, and a citrus commodity survey outside San Diego County will account for about $440,000, Mr. Hawkins said. That work is funded through the USDA, but the work primarily will be done by the CDFA.
Citrus greening surveying involves looking for commodity greening symptoms in trees while psyllid surveying involves looking for insects and testing plant samples, Mr. Hawkins said.
On Sept. 2, APHIS confirmed Asian citrus psyllid presence in San Diego County. A single detection of an Asian citrus psyllid triggers quarantine measures. The detection of multiple psyllids set that process in motion days later. On Oct. 17, the CDFA announced the detection of Asian citrus psyllids in Imperial County. The quarantines prevent the movement of the psyllids into uninfested areas to keep the pest away from citrus-producing regions. All the psyllid pest detections in California have tested negative for citrus greening disease.
APHIS also is conducting cooperative Asian citrus psyllid surveillance in Texas as a result of the presence of the pest there. Following detections of the insect in Louisiana, APHIS supported a cooperative Asian citrus psyllid surveillance effort and is working with the state to develop a long-term surveillance plan. In addition, APHIS is working cooperatively with Mexico's Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries & Food to provide assistance, training and resources to determine the extent of the Asian citrus psyllid infestation and stop its spread.
The Asian citrus psyllid was first detected in the United States in 1998 in Florida. The pest's feeding causes minor initial damage, but in doing so, it transmits the bacteria that cause citrus greening disease, which can kill healthy citrus trees in five to eight years. It does not pose a human health risk, but it greatly reduces fruit production and will cause economic losses. There is no known cure for a tree once it is infected with the disease. To date, citrus greening has been detected only in Florida and Louisiana.
The Asian citrus psyllid can carry citrus greening, which is one of the more devastating citrus diseases in the world. The funding will be used to stop the spread of the pest in California before it seriously damages citrus production in the state, which at $1.1 billion ranks it second in citrus revenue behind Florida.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service is working cooperatively with the California Department of Food & Agriculture on an Asian citrus psyllid program. The funds will be used for intensive surveillance for Asian citrus psyllid and citrus greening disease, also known as Huanglongbing. Funding also will support quarantine regulations, as well as outreach and education about the pest to California's nursery owners, the citrus industry and the public.
Larry Hawkins, a USDA spokesperson, said that the $5.8 million will be divided between field operations for APHIS and the CDFA. Some $900,000 in federal money will be allocated to APHIS for field operations and regulatory activity.
A cooperative agreement between APHIS and CDFA accounts for two areas of funding. Some $4.47 million will be used for survey and regulation work in San Diego County, and a citrus commodity survey outside San Diego County will account for about $440,000, Mr. Hawkins said. That work is funded through the USDA, but the work primarily will be done by the CDFA.
Citrus greening surveying involves looking for commodity greening symptoms in trees while psyllid surveying involves looking for insects and testing plant samples, Mr. Hawkins said.
On Sept. 2, APHIS confirmed Asian citrus psyllid presence in San Diego County. A single detection of an Asian citrus psyllid triggers quarantine measures. The detection of multiple psyllids set that process in motion days later. On Oct. 17, the CDFA announced the detection of Asian citrus psyllids in Imperial County. The quarantines prevent the movement of the psyllids into uninfested areas to keep the pest away from citrus-producing regions. All the psyllid pest detections in California have tested negative for citrus greening disease.
APHIS also is conducting cooperative Asian citrus psyllid surveillance in Texas as a result of the presence of the pest there. Following detections of the insect in Louisiana, APHIS supported a cooperative Asian citrus psyllid surveillance effort and is working with the state to develop a long-term surveillance plan. In addition, APHIS is working cooperatively with Mexico's Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries & Food to provide assistance, training and resources to determine the extent of the Asian citrus psyllid infestation and stop its spread.
The Asian citrus psyllid was first detected in the United States in 1998 in Florida. The pest's feeding causes minor initial damage, but in doing so, it transmits the bacteria that cause citrus greening disease, which can kill healthy citrus trees in five to eight years. It does not pose a human health risk, but it greatly reduces fruit production and will cause economic losses. There is no known cure for a tree once it is infected with the disease. To date, citrus greening has been detected only in Florida and Louisiana.
