The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is allocating almost $2 million to Massachusetts as part of its effort to strengthen the nation’s infrastructure for pest detection and surveillance, identification, and threat mitigation, and to safeguard the U.S. nursery production system. Overall, USDA is providing more than $70 million in funding this year to support 372 projects in 49 states, Guam, and Puerto Rico. USDA provides this funding under the authority of the Plant Protection Act Section 7721.
“Massachusetts produces more than $475 million in agricultural goods annually. The agricultural industry in the state employs more than 25,000 residents. Protecting Massachusetts’ agricultural industry is critical,” said USDA Under Secretary Jenny Moffitt. “These projects will help Massachusetts protect its resources and contribute to keeping our nation’s agricultural economy strong.”
These funds will support projects covering a range of plant health and pest mitigation activities, including, but not limited to:
- $440,642 to sterile insect technique, mating disruption and other tools to respond to box tree moth incursions;
- $329,578 to develop biological control methods to manage the Roseau cane scale;
- $152,350 for facilitating the use of microsporidian pathogen, Ovavesicula popilliae, for long-term suppression of the Japanese beetle;
- $155,200 to develop attract-and-kill tools to monitor and manage the khapra beetle;
- $148,750 to support an Asian longhorned beetle outreach campaign;
- $116,507 to support studies on Hemlock woolly adelgid management and control;
- $97,188 to develop lures for the Asian giant hornet; and
- $84,667 to research pheromones for the spotted lanternfly.
View the fiscal year 2022 Plant Protection Act’s Section 7721 spending plans on the USDA, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service website: www.aphis.usda.gov/ppa-projects.
