Contact:
Rhonda Santos, (508) 852-8044
rhonda.j.santos@aphis.usda.gov
Suzanne Bond, (301) 851-4070
suzanne.m.bond@aphis.usda.gov
WASHINGTON, May 8, 2017 — The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), together with the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets, the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, and the Ohio Department of Agriculture, is announcing plans for the Asian longhorned beetle (ALB) eradication efforts taking place in 2017. APHIS and its partners have been making steady progress towards the eradication of this destructive tree pest since its detection in New York in 1996.
“The goal is to eliminate this non-native, tree-killing pest, from the United States,” said Josie Ryan, APHIS’ national operations manager for the Asian Longhorned Beetle Eradication Program. “We are confident that we can remove the beetle using the strategies we have available to us.”