Cooperative Pest Prevention and Suppression

The Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978, Section 8(b)(3), describes the authority for Forest Health Protection (FHP) to “plan, organize, direct and perform measures to prevent, retard, control or suppress incipient, potential, threatening, or emergency insect infestations and disease conditions affecting trees.” These activities are performed in cooperation with state regulatory officials and state foresters on state & private lands.

Program Objective

The objective of pest prevention and suppression projects is to reduce the damage to forest and tree resources from outbreaks of insect and disease-causing pests. In recent years emphasis has broadened to include management and control of established non-indigenous invasive forest and tree pests.

Project Priorities

Pest prevention and suppression priorities are established by the Washington Office and reflect national issues as well as input from the Regions and the Northeastern Area. The current priorities for funding are:

1. Protect threatened and endangered species habitat

2. Eradicate new exotic insect and disease infestations

3. Protect developed recreation sites or high valued trees

4. Protect adjacent private land

5. Protect native vegetation (forests & trees)

FHP Activities

FHP provides a broad range of technical assistance to help our partners implement projects. Specifically our objective is to provide a comprehensive program of pest prevention and suppression management support including assistance in developing effective organizational structures; contracting assistance; compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act, the Endangered Species Act, and relevant Executive Orders; aircraft calibration; and pilot testing of new methods or materials (technology development); among other activities. Some examples follow:

Survey Assistance

• Sudden oak death surveys in forested areas
• EDRR surveys for non-native bark beetles
• Hemlock woolly adelgid surveys

Compliance with Federal Laws and Regulations

• Site specific environmental assessments for each gypsy moth project
• Assistance in public scoping to identify project issues

Treatment evaluation

• Hemlock woolly adelgid biocontrol evaluation
• Development and evaluation of invasive plant control methods
• Gypsy moth suppression project reviews and reports
• Gypsy moth treatment monitoring

Technology Development

• Fungicide injection development for laurel wilt
• Soil and tree injection of insecticides for hemlock woolly adelgid control
• Rearing of HWA predators and evaluation/support of new predators
• Characterization trials of aircraft and spray systems
  

Funding

Funding for pest prevention and suppression projects on state and private lands is allocated from the Cooperative Lands Forest Health Management budget line item. Gypsy moth, SPB, HWA, and invasive plants make up the largest portion of funding every year. Oak wilt disease in Texas is another priority.

The table below gives a breakdown of funding by pest over the past 5 years. The numbers in the table are thousands of dollars. Note: STS budget numbers are provided in the STS briefing paper.

Updated: February 2010

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USDA Forest Service - Forest Health Protection, Southern Region
Last Modified: Monday, 14 January 2013 at 09:38:23 EST