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  • From: Pete Vukovich <pvukovic1@yahoo.com>
  • To: Livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: [Livingontheland] USDA and the brown apple moth
  • Date: Tue, 15 Sep 2009 10:33:42 -0700 (PDT)



http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/ci_13339087?source=rss

Upton said the USDA is required by law to base its decisions on sound science. But he doesn't think the USDA will back down because the emergency eradication program brings in "too much funding."

"I really believe the next step is a lawsuit against USDA," Upton said.

Since the moth was first detected in a Berkeley backyard in 2006, more than 150,000 light brown apple moths have been trapped in the state, two-thirds in Santa Cruz and San Francisco counties. More than 23,000 moths had been found in Santa Cruz County so far this year. Close to 3,500 square miles have been quarantined, requiring inspection of vegetables, fruits, flowers and plants to confirm they are pest-free before shipment outside the area.

In June, state agriculture officials reported damage to blackberries in a field near Watsonville, the first actual crop damage reported in California.

Federal and state agriculture officials launched an aggressive campaign from the start in hopes of eradicating the moth before it became entrenched. But aerial spraying of a pheromone over urban areas of Santa Cruz and Monterey counties sparked outrage and lawsuits.






  • [Livingontheland] USDA and the brown apple moth, Pete Vukovich, 09/15/2009

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