Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler sits down each week with Southern Farm Network’s Rhonda Garrison to discuss “Today’s Topic.”
The NCDA&CS is expanding a state quarantine for the imported fire ant to include Graham, Halifax and Macon counties. This expansion will take effect Jan. 1, and it will bring to 74 the total number of North Carolina counties affected by the quarantine.
Under the quarantine, residents and business owners in these counties will need to obtain a permit before moving plants, sod and related equipment into or through non-infested areas. Certificates can be obtained from a local plant protection specialist or by contacting the Plant Protection Section at 1-800-206-9333.
Items requiring a permit include nursery stock, sod, soil, hay and straw, logs or pulpwood with soil, and soil-moving equipment. In addition, the quarantine prohibits the movement of any other products, items or infested materials that present a risk of spread from established fire ant areas to non-infested areas. Failure to obtain the needed inspections and certifications may result in the issuance of a stop-sale notice, and rejection or destruction of the regulated item.
The imported fire ant was first identified in North Carolina in Brunswick County in 1957.
To hear Commissioner Troxler and Rhonda talk about the quarantine, click on the audio player below.
[Audio:/wp-content/uploads/Troxler_12-8-15.mp3|titles=Today’s Topic for Dec. 8]
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