Washington, DC
October 12, 2007
WASHINGTON, Oct. 12, 2007— Acting
Agriculture Secretary Chuck Conner announced today universities
in four states will receive $950,000 in cooperative agreements
for research against harmful pests and diseases.
"We have selected six research projects that will help identify
effective means to prevent the introduction of invasive plant
pests and animal diseases," said Conner. "Protecting agriculture
from pests and disease is a major priority to protect our food
security and economic investment through prevention, control and
eradication."
The agreements announced today will provide funding to
universities in California, Colorado, Indiana, and Mississippi.
These research projects are competitively awarded by the Program
of Research on the Economics of Invasive Species Management
(PREISM), administered by USDA's Economic Research Service
(ERS). Among the subjects the projects will examine are:
- mechanisms to prevent the
entry of invasive species in agricultural imports by
encouraging foreign exporters to reveal information about
their presence in cargo;
- circumstances under which
Government should use indemnification, insurance, and/or
assistance with management to address poultry disease
outbreaks;
- efficiency of alternative
strategies for managing the spread of mobile pests,
including incentives for participation in regional pest
management organizations;
- economic effects of
existing sanitary requirements for U.S. exports of livestock
and germplasm, and the implications for animal disease
surveillance;
- approaches to identify and
select economically efficient strategies for managing
invasive plant pests and foreign animal diseases.
The complete list of awards is
attached. PREISM studies will provide analytically based
principles, guidelines, and criteria for invasive species policy
and program decision making, as well as the economic
information, modeling systems, or other tools that support the
decision making. Further information about these projects is on
the web at:
http://www.ers.usda.gov/Briefing/InvasiveSpecies/ .
FY 2007 PREISM Competitive Cooperative Agreements
University of California-Riverside, Riverside, CA, $196,000
The project will examine mechanisms that may prevent the
import of invasive species in agricultural commodities by
encouraging foreign, private-sector exporters to reveal
information about the presence of invasive species in cargo.
Such mechanisms include random inspections, compensatory
payments, early warning systems, and offshore pre-clearance
programs.
Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS, $180,000
The study will consider the circumstances under which
government agencies should use indemnification, insurance,
and/or assistance with management programs to manage poultry
diseases such as avian influenza and exotic Newcastle disease.
University of California-Davis, Davis,
CA, $175,000
Researchers will examine the economic efficiency of
alternative strategies for managing mobile insects and analyze
incentives for homeowners and commercial growers to participate
in regional pest management organizations, using the olive fruit
fly, a pest spreading in California, as a case study. The
project will consider effects of the pest's mobility between
commercial groves, abandoned groves, and ornamental trees on
public and private property, as well as on markets for olives
and olive oil.
Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, $142,000
The project will estimate probability distributions of
economic value for contingency plans to control and manage
foot-and-mouth disease, and analyze preferred strategies.
University of California-Davis, Davis,
CA, $135,000
The study will evaluate institutions and incentives to encourage
optimal levels, location, and timing of control of spreading
invasive weeds. As part of the study, the researchers will
examine optimal patterns and extent of control efforts for
yellow starthistle in California.
Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, $121,000
This project will quantify the effects of existing sanitary
requirements facing U.S. exports of live animals, breeding
stock, and germplasm, and prioritize livestock disease
surveillance efforts for export purposes. |
|
