Light Brown Apple Moth (LBAM)

Thank you for your continued interest in the state and federal response to the Light Brown Apple Moth (LBAM). Since 2007, entomologists and other experts have been telling the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) that LBAM does not warrant an eradication program, and that eradication is not possible. I continue to assert that LBAM should no longer be classified as an actionable "Class A" pest. California has limited resources, and there are other invasive species that pose real threats to agriculture and deserve our attention. It's time to end the costly charade once and for all.

The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) has prepared a Scoping Report for its Statewide Plant Pest Prevention and Management Program Environmental Impact Report (PEIR). This Scoping Report summarizes the comments and questions raised during the public scoping period for the preparation of the PEIR.

Scoping is the process conducted to determine the coverage, focus and content of the PEIR as prescribed by the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Scoping helps to identify the range of actions, alternatives, environmental effects and mitigation measures for in depth analysis in the PEIR. This process also helps to select methods of assessment, and to eliminate from detailed study those issues that are not relevant to the project or required under CEQA. In addition, scoping is an effective way to identify and consolidate the concerns of any interested parties, which may include project proponents and opponents, and interested federal, state, and local agencies, among others.

Click on the following link to download Scoping Report:

• Statewide Plant Pest Prevention and Management Program - Scoping Report

EIR Timeline:

September 2011: CDFA will release a Scoping Report summarizing the number and type of comments received on draft PEIR.

CDFA will also be posting an invitation to participate on a Technical Advisory Group.

Mid-2012: Draft Program EIR will be released.

Late 2012/early 2013: Final Program EIR certified.

I encourage you to sign up for receiving notices, updates and additional information about the PEIR and urge you to participate in this process by visiting www.cdfa.ca.gov/go/peir.

On March 23, 2010, the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) certified the final Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the Light Brown Apple Moth (LBAM) program and announced in its findings a major program shift from eradication to suppression of LBAM. This policy shift follows USDA's announcement on March 15, 2010 that "eradication in California is not currently feasible" due to increase in LBAM populations. Further, in the findings portion of the EIR, CDFA stated, "aerial treatment with moth pheromones is not a management tool in the program." CDFA's plans to control LBAM will now rely on the use of pheromone twist ties and release of sterile moths. This marks a significant change in direction that vindicates questions and criticisms that myself and others have been voicing for more than two years.

After two years of stubbornly defending a flawed eradication program, at least USDA and CDFA are now acknowledging that their critics were right– that eradication of LBAM is not possible. Now it's time to confront the largest elephant in the room: LBAM should no longer be classified as an actionable "Class A" pest. Continuing with most of the same measures under the name of 'suppression' instead of 'eradication' misses the point. California has limited resources, and there are other invasive species that pose real threats to agriculture and deserve our attention. It's time to end the costly charade once and for all.

I held the first legislative hearing on the LBAM eradication program on February 14, 2008, as Chair of the Assembly's Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials Committee. Later that year, I authored and passed AB 2765, which created strict new requirements that must be met before CDFA can propose aerial pesticide spraying as part of a pest eradication program. The new law requires the department to hold public hearings, disclose elements of the spray and to evaluate the human and environmental health effects. Any future plans by CDFA that include aerial spray in urban areas, whether for LBAM or any other pest, are now subject to this legislation.

In November of 2009, following a National Academy of Sciences report that questioned the scientific justification for the LBAM eradication program, I wrote to USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack and urged him to reexamine the science regarding the listing of LBAM as a "Class A" pest and to also reconsider the feasibility of eradication. Despite the growth of the LBAM population in California over the past two years, there has been no credible evidence of crop damage.

Since 2007, entomologists and other experts have been telling CDFA and USDA that LBAM does not warrant an eradication program, and that eradication is not possible. I'm hopeful that the recent change in directions means these agencies are finally starting to listen and apply more science and common sense to the this issue.

Jared

12/09/10 - Little progress on light brown apple moth - SONOMA NEWS

Light Brown Apple Moth Sterile Insect Field Evaluation Project in Sonoma and Napa, California
Environmental Assessment - May 2009

CDFA may have underestimated the toxic danger of LBAM pesticides by Glen Chase, Professor of Systems Management specializing in Environmental Economics and Statistics

OEHHA response to Glen Chase

Huffman asks DPR for response to Professor Chase's claim

DPR's letter responding to Professor Glen Chase's Press Release about math error