Pest Management - Quarantine
What is a Quarantine?
Quarantines are laws or regulations enacted by a government body with jurisdiction to prevent the entry of a pest, eliminate an isolated pest infestation, and prevent the spread of a pest. Compliance agreements, permits, and other administrative means restrict the movement of possible infested plant material and other articles associated with moving the pest. When properly enforced, quarantine laws and regulations protect against the entry and spread of pests. Quarantines occur on the Federal, State, and County level.
California uses a pest rating system to determine the risk associated with a pest. The pest rating system requires knowledge and experience about the pest, its lifecycle, associated hosts, ability to disperse, economic impact, environmental impact, and current geographical distribution.
Quarantine, eradication, and destruction efforts are generally applied to pests rated as “A” and “B.” “Q” rated pest interceptions usually result in the rejection, destruction and/or treatment of a shipment.
The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) gives each pest a score and assigns a rating:
- The Q rating is for pests of the agricultural industry or environment which score high and which are not known to occur or where their California distribution is unknown, and which are otherwise suspected of being economically harmful to the agricultural industry or the environment, and which may not be completely identified, or for which there is inadequate available scientific information.
- The A rating is for pests of the agricultural industry or environment which score high and are not known to occur or are under official control in the State of California.
- The B rating is for pests of the agricultural industry or environment which score medium to high and which are of limited distribution in the State of California.
- The C rating is for pests of the agricultural industry or environment which score medium to low and are of common occurrence and generally distributed in California.
- The D rating is for an organism which scores low and is known to be of little or no economic importance to the agricultural industry or environmental detriment, has an extremely low likelihood of invasiveness, is known to be a parasite or predator or pathogen of a pest, or is an otherwise beneficial organism.
The Fresno County Department of Agriculture Enforces Both Interior and Exterior Quarantines
Exterior Quarantines: Fresno County is threatened with the introduction of invasive pests from around the world and even from other states of the U.S. To protect California from the movement of these pests into the state or into Fresno County, quarantines are established to prevent their introduction.
Interior Quarantines: For invasive pests that have been introduced in California but are of limited distribution, quarantine restrictions are enforced through the establishment of interior quarantines. The public and agricultural industry can do their part. Follow any quarantine laws and regulations that have been established. Do not unnecessarily buy or move plants and plant products from long distances.
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