scholarly journals Current Status of Forest Health Policy in the United States

Insects ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 106 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gandhi ◽  
Campbell ◽  
Abrams

ederal policies related to forestry and forest health (specifically, insects and diseases) have the potential to affect management practices, terms of international and interstate trade, and long-term sustainability and conservation. Our objectives were to review existing federal policies, the role of federal agencies in managing forest health, and guidance for future policy efforts. Since the 1940s, various federal policies relevant to forest health have been established, and several US Department of Agriculture (USDA) agencies have been empowered to assist with prevention, quarantine, detection, management, and control of insects and diseases. Overall, our review showed that relatively few national policies directly address forest health as a stand-alone objective, as most of them are embedded within forestry bills. Federal funding for forest health issues and the number of personnel dedicated to such issues have declined dramatically for some agencies. Concomitantly, native species continue to gain pestiferous status while non-native species continue to establish and cause impacts in the US. To enhance our ability and capacity to deal with current and future threats, concerted efforts are needed to advocate for both resources and stand-alone policy tools that take seriously the complexity of emerging sustainability challenges in both private and public forestlands.

2021 ◽  
pp. 587-628
Author(s):  
Ranajit Bandyopadhyay ◽  
◽  
Alejandro Ortega-Beltran ◽  
Matieyedou Konlambigue ◽  
Lawrence Kaptoge ◽  
...  

Aflatoxins pose a significant public health risk, decrease productivity and profitability and hamper trade. To minimize aflatoxin contamination a biocontrol technology based on atoxigenic strains of Aspergillus flavus that do not produce aflatoxin is used widely in the United States. The technology, with the generic name Aflasafe, has been improved and adapted for use in Africa. Aflasafe products have been developed or are currently being developed in 20 African countries. Aflatoxin biocontrol is being scaled up for use in several African countries through a mix of public, private, and public-private interventions. Farmers in several countries have commercially treated nearly 400,000 ha of maize and groundnut achieving >90% reduction in aflatoxin contamination. This chapter summarizes the biology of aflatoxin-producing fungi and various factors affecting their occurence, including climate change. Various management practices for aflatoxin mitigation are then discussed. These include biological control, which is increasingly being adopted by farmers in several countries. We discuss biocontrol product development and commercialization in various African countries. Subsequently, we highlight some barriers to adoption and other challenges.


1990 ◽  
Vol 6 (5) ◽  
pp. 23-51 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Timothy Oppelt

In the United States over the last ten years, concern over important disposal practices of the past has manifested itself in the passage of a series of federal and state-level hazardous waste cleanup and control statutes of unprecedented scope. The impact of these various statutes will be a significant modification of waste management practices. The more traditional and lowest cost methods of direct landfilling, storage in surface impoundments and deep-well injection will be replaced, in large measure, by waste minimization at the source of generation, waste reuse, physical/chemical/biological treatment, incinceration and chemical stabilization/solidification methods. Of all of the “terminal” treatment technologies, properly-designed incineration systems are capable of the highest overall degree of destruction and control for the broadest range of hazardous waste streams. Substantial design and operational experience exists and a wide variety of commercial systems are available. Consequently, significant growth is anticipated in the use of incineration and other thermal destruction methods. The objective of this paper is to examine the current state of knowledge regarding air emissions from hazardous waste incineration in an effort to put the associated technological and environmental issues into perspective.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy P Lampasona ◽  
Cesar Rodriguez-Saona ◽  
Tracy C Leskey ◽  
Anne L Nielsen

Abstract The plum curculio, Conotrachelus nenuphar Herbst (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), is an insect native to the Americas that is a serious pest of stone and pome fruits in the United States and Canada. Failure to effectively manage this insect may result in up to 85% damaged fruit at harvest, as well as early season fruit abortion. Conotrachelus nenuphar is oligophagous, feeding and ovipositing on many Rosaceous plants, including apple, peach, plum, cherry, quince, and pear. Additionally, C. nenuphar in limited geographic ranges utilizes alternate hosts such as highbush blueberry (Ericaceae) and Muscadine grape (Vitaceae). Despite its long history as a pest, integrated pest management (IPM) lags behind similarly damaging native fruit pests. Although significant progress has been made on the identification of attractive lures for monitoring C. nenuphar adults, development of behaviorally based management strategies, and biological control with entomopathogenic nematodes, growers continue to rely heavily on top-down chemical inputs to manage this pest. Most of the research to date comes from studies done in apples where alternative management practices for C. nenuphar have, to some extent, been adopted; however, less IPM-based information is available for other susceptible crops. In this review, we summarize the history, biology, ecology, behavior, and control of C. nenuphar and future directions for IPM research.


2008 ◽  
Vol 35 (3) ◽  
pp. 235 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura A. Meyerson ◽  
Richard Engeman ◽  
Robin O'Malley

Basic information on the distribution, spread and impacts of non-native species in the USA is not available to those who shape national environmental policy. Although the USA spends billions of dollars annually on introduced species research, monitoring and control efforts, only a limited number of government agencies or private institutions are able to provide definitive reports on more than a handful of these species at a national scale. Research on invasive species is only of marginal practical value if the information cannot be succinctly and effectively transmitted to those who determine the management policies, budgets and objectives. To remedy this situation, a national-scale approach for monitoring established non-native species has been developed under the auspices of the Heinz Center as part of ‘The State of the Nation’s Ecosystems’ project. This paper specifically describes the strategies for reporting on indicators for non-native vertebrate species developed through inputs by experts from academia, industry, environmental organisations and government.


2020 ◽  
Vol 98 (Supplement_4) ◽  
pp. 42-43
Author(s):  
Lee Schulz ◽  
Glynn Tonsor

Abstract African swine fever and many other livestock diseases present a host of challenges with a myriad of private and public good considerations. Chief among these challenges is identifying what drives livestock producer, self-protecting biosecurity efforts. Biosecurity adoption is an example of a private behavior that generates positive spillovers affecting the supply of a public good, that is, disease prevention. Encouraging producers to undertake specific biosecurity practices has proven useful in containing previous outbreaks of livestock disease in the United States, such as porcine epidemic diarrhea virus. Motivating producers to change production and management practices when a disease is not currently present in the United States can be much more difficult because of the (perceived or actual) lower probability of risk. National surveys of livestock producers were conducted to gain insight into decisions regarding ongoing and prospective biosecurity investment. Findings suggest producer and operation characteristics and diverse views on expected frequency of disease outbreaks, anticipated disease duration, and possible financial impact on operations underlie current and likely future biosecurity adoption. Furthermore, results point to both policy (e.g., indemnity provisions and cost sharing strategies) and market signals (e.g. market access and/or premiums paid or discounts incurred) from upstream livestock buyers have potential to incentivize biosecurity efforts.


<em>Abstract.</em>—Aquaculture development in the United States continues its expansion from freshwater into coastal and nearshore oceanic environments. As it does so, the selection of species to culture and the location of culture operations are generating much debate about the role of government entities, especially agriculture and conservation agencies, in the management of this development. Many in the industry argue that regulations are already too onerous, subsidies are too few, governmental encouragement is too little, and that the best way to correct these problems is to place all control over the development in governmental agriculture agencies. Others argue that the potential environmental impacts of aquaculture could be so adverse, or at least so uncertain that conservation agencies need to impose even more controls. This debate occurred in Texas in the 1980s as private aquaculture sought to increase the culture of nonindigenous species, in both private and public waters. The potential effects on native species in public waters led to legislation that attempted to balance economic development with environmental safeguards. However, only Texas was affected by the statute and subsequent regulations. Since the potential environmental affects of aquaculture development will undoubtedly cross local, state, and tribal boundaries, it is now felt by many that the regulation of the species cultured and sites selected should be a federal issue. The same questions about who within the federal government should have responsibility for managing aquaculture development require resolution. This paper will examine lessons learned from the Texas experience for possible application in the federal arena.


Author(s):  
Micaela Dunbar-Gaynor ◽  
Ericka Zimmerman ◽  
Victor Liberi

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify and describe the status of P&P practices of secondary school athletic trainers. Methods: Following an online informed consent confirmation, participants completed a Policies and Procedures Status questionnaire, including demographics. This was distributed to certified athletic trainers currently employed in the secondary school setting in the United States. The survey consisted of 49 questions about the status of P&Ps using one of the following responses: the practice is in operation and it appears in written form; the practice is in operation but does not appear in written form; the practice is not in operation but does appear in written form; and the practice is not in operation and it does not appear in written form. This study utilized descriptive statistics, consisting of means, frequencies, and percentages, to report results that described the current status of policies and procedures Results: There was a total of 232 participants. 72.6% of secondary school athletic trainers had existing P&P manuals and 37.9% reported the P&P manual existed when they acquired the position. 31.9% who did not have an existing P&P manual upon starting their position never developed a manual. 45.7% of all P&Ps were reported to exist in both written and operational form and 25.9% reported having neither written nor operational forms of P&Ps. 54.5% used the BOC Guiding Principles for AT Policy and Procedure Development and 45.2% used the BOC Facility Principles document. Conclusion: The results revealed almost half of participants reported the risk management practices in the P&P manual were in operational and written form. P&Ps that have been described in NATA Position Statements were more likely to be in both written and operational form when compared to those that were not. Secondary school athletic trainers may have limited guidance and training in risk management, with even less guidance on resources specifically for developing and reviewing P&Ps.


1996 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 194b-200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melvin P. Garber ◽  
William G. Hudson ◽  
Jeffrey G. Norcini ◽  
Ronald K. Jones ◽  
Ann R. Chase ◽  
...  

A national survey of the greenhouse and nursery industries was conducted to determine the current status of pest management practices. This study covers the trends in chemical and nonchemical pest control measures and factors that affect adoption of nonchemical control measures. For the 5-year period 1988-93, there appeared to be a decrease in chemical use for disease and insect control and for plant growth regulators. During the same period there was an increase in chemical weed control. The adoption of nonchemical pest control measures was concentrated in the area of insect control. The primary factors limiting use of nonchemical pest control measures were 1) availability of effective materials/biological agents, 2)availability of information, and 3) management complexity. The primary information sources on nonchemical pest control used by growers varied by size of firm and region of the country. For all respondents the primary sources were 1) industry trade journals, 2) other growers in the industry, 3) cooperative extension service, and 4) industry-sponsored seminars.


2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 310-323 ◽  
Author(s):  
Debra Knopman ◽  
Martin Wachs ◽  
Benjamin Miller ◽  
Scott Davis ◽  
Katherine Pfrommer

Federal infrastructure investment is receiving a great deal of attention, largely about money: how to finance capital investment, operations, and maintenance. Less discussed but very important is modernizing federal policy to support the mature and urban-centered economy of the United States—rather than the economy it had when most of the terms of federal engagement were set. This article summarizes a RAND Corporation report which addresses recent trends in infrastructure spending and finance and proposes improvements in federal infrastructure policy. We argue for modernizing federal policies related to funding, finance, and project selection. Modernization should recognize the centrality of regional initiatives that transcend local government and state boundaries and should encourage different types of financing—public, private, and public–private partnerships. Poorly targeted investment comes from poorly designed policy. Inadequate maintenance often is a symptom of failure of management and governance. More money will help, but it is not nearly enough.


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