The Board of Directors of the Consolidated Central Valley Table Grape Pest and Disease Control District authorized the use of up to $1.7 million in reactionary funds for the fight against Pierce’s Disease (PD) and its main vector, the glassy-winged sharpshooter (GWSS).
The emergency allotment, generated directly by the California table grape industry, will support the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) in its ongoing efforts to control and eradicate the pest and stop the spread of PD.
Referential image via Shutterstock.
Spread mainly via GWSS, PD is an incurable bacterial disease that chokes water-conducting vessels and ultimately kills grape vines.
Left unchecked, the disease threatens California's $170.5 billion wine grape and $2.59 billion table grape sectors, with annual potential losses estimated by the CDFA to exceed $104 million.
Urgency surrounding pest management escalated following a major spread event in May, when GWSS-infested nursery stock distributed to several Costco locations in the Golden State led authorities to suspect pest presence across at least 38 counties near primary grape-growing regions.
Image courtesy of Napa County Government
Multi-crop coordination is vital for the fight against PD, as citrus trees serve as the GWSS’s primary year-round host. Part of the newly released funds will support CDFA-coordinated treatments in citrus orchards, preventing populations from expanding into adjacent vineyards.
The local funding initiative comes after sustained federal funding shortfalls that have eroded the financial support for California’s GWSS Area-Wide Treatment Program year over year.
Back in June, a bipartisan coalition of state lawmakers, led by US Senators Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff (both D-CA), sent a formal letter to USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins to request
$32.2 million from the Commodity Credit Corporation. The funds, the missive said, would go to finance emergency trapping, trace-back operations, and long-term eradication projects over the next four years.
However, in mid August, the federal agency formally denied the request through a letter signed by USDA Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs, Dudley Hoskins. In the document, the agency said it would not grant additional financial support for local GWSS eradication and monitoring efforts.
Image courtesy of Napa County Government
“We will continue to carefully monitor the glassy-winged sharpshooter detections in California and evaluate if additional resources, such as emergency funding, are needed to supplement the current funds and resources that (USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service) is providing,” Hoskins wrote in the letter, which was obtained by local media outlet The Sacramento Bee. “...USDA remains committed to mitigating this destructive insect through our strong cooperative efforts.”
According to the news site, CDFA is currently working with $15 million in federal funds, an amount that “cannot support urban eradication when new infestations are detected.”
By releasing district reactionary funds now, the Consolidated Central Valley Table Grape Pest and Disease Control District aims to bridge the immediate financial deficit and maintain uninterrupted field operations while continuing to pursue long-term federal and state funding solutions.
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