Oregon, Washington Receive USDA Funds To Protect Nursery Production

The USDA is allocating $1.9 million to Washington, and $1.1 million to Oregon, as part of its effort to strengthen the nation’s infrastructure for pest detection and surveillance, identification, and threat mitigation, and to safeguard the U.S. nursery production system.

Overall, USDA is providing almost $70 million in funding this year to support 386 projects in 48 States, The District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico. USDA provides this funding under the authority of the Plant Protection Act Section 7721.

“Both Washington and Oregon are critical partners in protecting U.S. agriculture,” said USDA Under Secretary Greg Ibach. “Through these projects, Washington will be able to better protect its own resources, and, contribute to USDA’s mission of keeping our nation’s agriculture economy healthy and strong.”

Washington projects include:

• $1,232,010 to support National Clean Plant
  Network foundation plant stocks for multiple crops;
• $380,035 for Asian gypsy moth eradication and
  response;
• $270,000 to survey for Asian defoliator moths;
• $168,940 to assess the presence of nepovirus
  viruliferous nematodes;
• $164,418 to improve risk modeling and monitoring
  for invasive fruit pests;
• $150,000 to survey for stone fruit pests;
• $145,083 to support the activities of the
  Western States Lepidoptera Diagnostic Center;
• $100,000 to survey for grape pests;
• $100,000 to survey for forest pests;

Oregon projects include:

• $235,000 for Asian defoliating moth survey;
• $219,265 to support National Clean Plant Network
  foundation plant stocks for berries;
• $128,682 to develop nematodes in the genus
  Phasmarhabditis as biological control agents of invasive gastropods;
• $93,835 to support an evaluative, collaborative,
  and strategic approach to the “Don’t Pack a Pest Campaign” targeting university
  students and faculty traveling internationally;
• $90,000 to support nursery surveys;
• $77,957 to support the development of biocontrol
  methods to address the Azalea lace bug.

Since 2009, USDA has supported more than 4,000 projects and provided nearly $600 million in funding through the Plant Pest and Disease Management and Disaster Prevention Program. Collectively, these projects allow USDA and its partners to quickly detect and rapidly respond to invasive pests and diseases. They also help our country maintain the infrastructure necessary to make sure that disease-free, certified planting materials are available to U.S. specialty crop producers.

As the United States and the world celebrate the International Year of Plant Health in 2020, this funding highlights USDA’s continued commitment to safeguarding our agricultural resources for current and future generations.

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