National Plant Board, Board of Directors Report

1. National Plant Board, Board of Directors Report Shashank Nilakhe, PhD Texas Department of Agriculture

2. Meetings • June 13-14, 2006, Lansing, Michigan. • November 16-17, Washington, D.C. • BRS meeting, November 15. • Conference calls.

3. Lansing Meeting - Rauscher • Movement of nursery stock: Theme for this meeting. State certification vs. national certification (clean stock program). SOD may lead to the latter. • Citrus canker and the potato cyst nematodes continue to be major concerns.

4. Opening Remarks, Paul Eggert • The plant world is getting more attention. Citrus canker, EAB have emerged as national issues, also use of plants for fuel. • No reduction in program budgets. • Congress shifted CC funding to CHRP.

5. FY 2007 Budget Requests

6. Action Items from November/March Meetings • Formal program review, build a template. • Develop a comprehensive weed strategy. • Revision of departmental permits; implementation to begin in August. • Increased detection of non-regulated pests. Dutch bulb imports. Their tolerance is 10-15%, U.S. allows 1%. Set tolerance in the contract.

7. CAPS, Dave Kaplan • Billy Newton on 90-day TDY. • Will appoint a CAPS director. • External review showed NAPIS inconsistent with CAPS. • National CAPS Advisory Committee.

8. Citrus Canker, Kaplan • Lawsuits stopped the program and hurricanes spread the disease. • Abandoned $1.2 eradication effort, CHRP emerged. Businesses to sign a compliance agreement. • CFR needs to reflect disease mgmt as opposed to eradication. CC distribution in FL unknown. • Released $100 million for tree compensation.

9. SOD, Jonathan Jones • Sixteen CA and 1 OR counties infested. • Added 16 species. Now it 100 spp. Total. • Traceforward protocol established; Traceback protocol pending; confirmed nursery protocol under revision. Forest and wild-lands protocols. • Inspections conducted under the Federal Order not enough to protect against the disease.

10. SOD, Jonathan • Staring 2008, no federal inspection of nurseries outside the quarantined area. • In 2005, Camellia accounted for 50% of the positive plants, rhododendron 38%, viburnum 6%, pieris 3% and kalmia 2%. • Positive nurseries: In 2003, 21; 2004, 178; 2005, 99; and 2006, 38 (CA 22, OR 12, 1 WA, 1 MS, 2 FL).

11. SOD, Jonathan • Fed. Order sunsets in 2007. Brad White: Western states and forest industry say, keep the Fed. Order. Criteria needed to place a state under and to remove from the Fed. Order. • Carol Holko: GA has its own BMP plan. ANLA/Industry plan deals with prevention, training, monitoring, record keeping, enforcement (3rd party audit); August deadline.

12. National Nursery Certification Program, Alan Green • NAPPO’s RSPM 24 about Plants for planting standard adopted in October. • Systems approach (clean stock, accepted levels of regulated non-quarantined pests, no quarantined pests, production practices, quality control, quality manual, recordkeeping, traceability) for import and export. Q37 rule would mirror NAPPO std.

13. Pilot certification program, Bob Bailey • Canada developed this program based on systems approach and tested it in 4 nurseries each in CA and OR. • Consistently produced high quality products. • PPQ approves USNCP Manual. • Phytos issued via PCIT.

14. Pilot Program, Gary McAnininch, ODA • Three medium sized nurseries ship 300 loads/year to Canada. • Financial burden to the nurseries. • Lots of manpower needed (6 months for the manual). No shipping point inspection. • Nursery and auditor must take it seriously. • Need to compare USCNP with the current method for pests and diseases.

15. Numerous • Osama: One sample tested positive for PCN • Kaplan/Mungari: For 2006, Sirex survey 1,000 taps set in NY, PA, VT, MI. FS and Canada also surveying. Draft PRA and EA ready. • Mike Ward: lab accreditation process, quality manual, review, audit, proficiency testing, fees, (seed testing for export).

16. Numerous • Gordon Gordh: NPPLAP (Ntnl. Plant Pathogen Lab Accreditation (P. ramorum). • Alan Green: Ntnl cargo release plan. Mike Firko: Aquatic snail permits. EAB Tour.

17. November 16-17, Washington D.C. Meeting • Dunkle: Delayed Canada user fee implementation until January 2007. Canada to implement plum pox eradication as U.S. • Rauscher: SOD, most significant issue. Good session of Forest Health. • Kaplan: Emergency Management Leadership Council (APHIS coordination).

18. Washington Meeting • Sirex, Alan Dowdy: Federal order draft ready. PRA done. Proposed Rule underway. OGC says lack of funding may hinder FO implementation. • SOD, Valerie de Feo, Carol Holko: Working Group. BMPs. Risk-based inspection regime. PRA needed. Clean stock program. Inexpensive rapid diagnostic test (takes 10 days now).

19. Washington Meeting, Continued • EAB, Vic Mastro: Promising semiochemicals. Spinosad a good option. Phil Bell says Illinois response slow. USDA may quarantine the whole state. Eradication in MD underway. • Spiderwort, Al Tasker: FL distribution unknown. Cotton growing states should be concerned. Infested counties: 29 GA, 2 MS, 1 AL, 1 NC. Funds given for treatment, survey and outreach.

20. Washington Meeting • Seed potato MOU, Will Wise. 14 of 15 seed potato producing states will sign. • CAPS, Joel Bard gave update. • Dutch pre-clearance trip report, Rauscher. • Enforcement, Bill Wade, Paula: Training, documentation for IES investigation. • ERP Training, Osama. Joe covey, taxonomic support. Pat Gomes, CHRP. NASDA Conf. Call, EAB, quarantine IN, IL, OH.

21. Washington Meeting, Last Slide • ALB, Mike Stefan: 2006 budget reduced by $10 million. Eradication by 2014. • PCN, Osama El-Lissy: 33K samples from 800 fields, 7 fields positive. Field and piler dirt surveys. $69/sample. Complete surveys by spring 2008 using CCC funds.