Biologist
Pacific Southwest Research Station
Albany, CA 94708
510-883-8825
susan.frankel@usda.gov
Susan is a biologist for Sudden Oak Death Research, at the USDA-Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station (PSW) in Albany, CA. For the past 10 years, Susan has run the national Sudden Oak Death/Phytophthora ramorum competitive research grants program. She was the first chairperson of the California Oak Mortality Task Force, www.suddenoakdeath.org, and continues to be one of the leaders working to address sudden oak death in California. Susan also works on prevention of pathogen introductions into restoration areas, forest diseases given climate change, tracking forest pest trends and urban forest health. Susan participates in numerous international, national, regional and local leadership capacities and is an Associate Editor for the Canadian Journal of Forest Research.
Susan's interests include forest Phytophthoras; invasive species management; climate change and forest diseases, urban forest health and tracking pest trends.
From 1987 to 2005, Susan worked as a plant pathologist for Forest Health Protection, State and Private Forestry, Pacific Southwest Region Headquarters. Susan worked primarily on on root diseases, nursery pests, sudden oak death and pitch canker.
Tree diseases, as exmplified by sudden oak death, affect people in many disciplines, industries and walks of life; for pathogen spread to be prevented all parties need to be engaged. Forest diseases need a scientific basis for management by land owners, arborists, homeowners, policy-makers, regulators, growers and producers (horticultural nurseries, compost, mushroom, cut foliage, Christmas trees), recreationists and tribal gatherers. Research findings are the basis for current international, federal and state regulations, and are used worldwide in risk assessments, monitoring and management programs.
U.S. forests are increasing threatened by invasive species, climate change and disturbance. Understanding the impacts of forest diseases is critical to sustain trees in urban forests, woodlands and wildlands.
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