MANAGING NEWLY ESTABLISHED PESTS: Growers, scientists and regulators collaborate on European grapevine moth program

Abstract

The first detection of the European grapevine moth in North America triggered the establishment of federal and state regulatory programs that (1) identified the insect's geographic range in California, (2) developed and implemented detection and management programs, (3) regulated the movement of plant material and equipment to minimize the threat of dispersal, (4) incorporated research-based information developed by subject-matter experts into policy decisions and (5) promoted a wide-reaching educational program for grape growers, the public and local officials. The action plan, developed and carried out through a coordinated program that included multiple government agencies, university scientists and the agricultural community, drastically reduced insect populations and limited the distribution in California vineyards such that some previously infested areas were removed from quarantine regulation.