Together, according to USDA, these forest pests have the  potential to cause the loss of trees valued at trillions of dollars. APHIS is the lead federal agency responsible for responding to insects and  diseases that have entered the country and that might harm U.S.  agriculture. Eradicating the Asian Longhorned Beetle Appears Likely, While Success on the Emerald Ash Borer and P. ramorum Is Less Promising

Evidence suggests that the Asian longhorned beetle will be eradicated,  while the emerald ash borer and P. ramorum are likely to continue to  infest and damage forest ecosystems indefinitely, despite efforts to control  them. Many Factors Affect the Success of Eradication Efforts

The success of efforts to eradicate the Asian longhorned beetle, the  emerald ash borer, and P. ramorum has been affected by factors relating  to species biology, quarantines, detection and control technologies, and  funding. Species Biology

Specific biological characteristics of each of the three pests greatly  influence the potential success of eradication efforts. This approach has been used to eradicate infestations of the Asian  longhorned beetle. Related to funding concerns, we found that timely updates to pest  management plans for the three species have not always been available to  provide decision makers and the public with current information about  how recent developments—including funding reductions—will affect the  prospects for success of the containment and eradication of these pests. The plans and their updates should  incorporate and describe changes in the extent of the infestations,  progress to date in control and eradication efforts, and long-term funding  needs. Other Areas of Continued Vulnerability in Regard to Preventing the Arrival and Spread of Pests

In our work on the three forest pests and, more broadly, the coordination  between USDA and DHS on invasive species prevention activities, we  found vulnerabilities that we believe should be addressed to reduce the  risk that new forest pests will arrive and spread. These vulnerabilities  involve USDA’s overall forest health monitoring program and USDA’s and  DHS’s management of port inspections. Urban areas are at high risk  because they are common destinations for cargo and travelers that might  be transporting pests. With the three pests we examined, as well as others,  we have seen that delays in detection and identification allowed them to  become established and spread before control efforts could begin. The first seeks to extend the agency’s normal forest sampling program,  which traditionally has not sufficiently sampled urban forests. For  example, we found that DHS has not developed or used a risk-based  staffing model to ensure that adequate numbers of agricultural inspectors  are staffed to ports and other areas of greatest vulnerability. In addition,  despite an interagency agreement intended to facilitate coordination and  communication between DHS and USDA, agricultural specialists are not  consistently receiving notifications of changes to inspection policies and  urgent inspection alerts. We also found that DHS has allowed its canine detection  program (dogs trained to sniff out items that may harbor pests) to  deteriorate. This is a work of the U.S. government and is not subject to copyright protection in the  United States.
Why GAO Did This Study

Invasive forest pests have seriously harmed our environment and imposed significant costs on our economy. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the lead agency for responding to forest pests and coordinates with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to prevent pests from entering the country. GAO issued two reports in 2006 on these programs. This testimony describes (1) the status of USDA's efforts to eradicate the Asian longhorned beetle, emerald ash borer, and Phytophthora ramorum; (2) the factors affecting the success of those eradication efforts; and (3) areas of continued vulnerability in regard to preventing the arrival and spread of forest pests.

What GAO Found

On the basis of the available evidence, it appears that the Asian longhorned beetle will be eradicated in the three states that have infestations, although funding reductions have extended the likely completion date. In contrast, the emerald ash borer and P. ramorum--the pathogen that causes Sudden Oak Death--are likely to continue to infest and damage forest ecosystems in the Midwest and on the West Coast, despite efforts to control them. The success of the federal responses to these infestations has been affected by several factors. First, the unique biological characteristics of each species greatly influences the ability to effectively control them. Second, quarantines have helped contain the spread of the pests, but implementing and enforcing quarantines has been difficult. Third, the only available method for eradicating these pests is to destroy infested trees and plants--a costly and sometimes impractical approach. Fourth, despite budgeting over $420 million to control these three pests, USDA program managers told GAO that funding has not been sufficient to fully implement their programs. We also found that USDA had not adequately prepared up-to-date management plans to provide decision makers and the public with current information on the extent of the infestation, eradication goals, and long-term funding needs. We identified areas of vulnerability that we believe increase the risk of future forest pest infestations. Specifically, we found that despite efforts to expand USDA's forest health monitoring programs, they do not adequately provide for comprehensive monitoring in urban forests or other locations considered at high risk from pest invasions. Monitoring in such areas is important because they are common destination points for internationally traded cargo, which is a frequent pathway for pests. Improvements could help prevent situations such as those experienced with the Asian longhorned beetle, the emerald ash borer, and P. ramorum, in which years of delay in detection allowed them to become established before control programs began. In our report on port inspections, we found that DHS has not used a risk-based staffing model to assign newly hired agricultural specialists to ports of entry. As a result, DHS does not have assurance that staff are assigned to areas of greatest vulnerability. In addition, despite an interagency agreement intended to facilitate coordination between DHS and USDA, agricultural specialists are not consistently receiving notifications of changes to policies and urgent inspection alerts in a timely manner. We also reported that DHS has allowed the canine inspection program--dogs trained to locate items that might harbor pests--to deteriorate. Dozens of canine units are vacant, and the proficiency scores of the remaining canine units have declined.