New Rule Will Help U.S. Stop Invasives
Invasive forest pests and diseases are a major threat to America’s forests, and they don’t discriminate. Invasives can devastate our family-owned forests, as well as, publicly-owned forested land. Many non-native invasive species enter the U.S. with live plants that are imported from other countries. These plants go to nurseries and land across the country, spreading pests and diseases. 
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has the authority to stop the importation of suspicious plants, but the current rules draw the process out for months and allow potentially harmful plants to continue to enter the country until a final decision is reached.
As E&E News Greenwire published yesterday, a new USDA rule will take effect on June 27, 2011, to allow APHIS to react more quickly and immediately stop the importation of plants suspected of carrying invasive species until a risk analysis is completed. APHIS will create a new category of plants that are “not authorized pending pest risk analysis” (NAPPRA).
The NAPPRA list will be posted online, and plants on the list cannot be imported until the analysis is completed. This gives APHIS greater authority to help stop the introduction of new invasive species that threaten our forests.
