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GRAPE GRO WING The glassy-winged sharpshooter, seen from below formerly un-infested region. It consists of intensive, targeted monitoring of GWSS in non-infested regions, a rapid, effective control response when a new infestation is discovered and rigorous control follow-up until the infestation is declared eradicated. Of 19 new infestations of GWSS that have occurred since 1999, 15 of them have been eradicated, an impressive re- cord. Wynn also reported that 2.3 million parasitic wasps from seven species have been released by the PDCP for biological control of GWSS at 67 release sites in 11 California counties. He concluded by summarizing the fund- ing for the PDCP: federal funding, through the USDA Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), was about $20 million in 2011, a decline from $23 million in pre- vious years. Most of this funding goes to California counties through the Agricul- tural Commissioners' offices for inspec- tion, trapping, eradication and GWSS area-wide control programs. In past years, the state of California , is the vector for Pierce's disease the PDCP, but these funds were elimi- nated for 2012. Due to the decline in federal and state funding, the California wine industry assessment fund increased its support from $2.8 million to $3.9 million in 2011, most of it going to re- search funding. More than 200 research projects have been funded by California wine industry assessment dollars since the start of the program. A 360º view The next session at the symposium was a report from three county agricultural commissioners: one from a fully GWSS- infested county, one from a county par- tially infested with GWSS and one from a county free of GWSS. What I found infor- mative about these presentations is how challenging and expensive it is to keep GWSS from spreading. Commissioner Karen Melvin from San Davison_Dir06.qxt 10/28/05 2:25 PM Page 1 allocated $4 million in general funds to Diego County, a fully GWSS-infested county, described how her team visually in- spects 100% of the nursery plants shipped out of the county, primarily looking for , a virus that is lethal to grapevines. GWSS egg masses. She showed some great photos of Oriental plum leaves to illus- trate how hard it is to spot the egg masses, reinforcing the skill and dedication of her staffers who do this all day without miss- ing anything. In 2011, more than 2,100 shipments of 1.4 million plants were inspected with no live GWSS found on the receiving end. The cost to nurseries of spraying for GWSS adds 25 cents per plant. San Diego County now is adopting the Approved Treatment Program to reduce the cost of inspections, but this program will still cost each nursery about $150,000 per year for the required treatments. At the end of Melvin's presentation, a member of the audience asked what would happen if the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service funding was eliminat- ed. Melvin said the costs for inspections would be passed on to the nurseries, a truly sobering thought. The report by commissioner Fred Rinder of Fresno County, a county partially infest- ed with GWSS, illustrated the challenge a Commercial Netting Fabrics When Protection Matters • Vinenet • MultiVine • Vineside • Vineside EZ 10 • Shade Net Davison Winery Supplies 1819 NE Baker St., McMinnville, Or 503-472-1711 The Northwest's Most Complete Winemaking Supply! For the professional or the beginner, we have it all. www.dwinesupplies.com 64 Wines & Vines MARCH 2012 Contact us for more information and samples: 1-800-560-4667 • www.shadefabrics.com sales@galepacificusa.com UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA/CDFA UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA/CDFA CDFA ( c en t er ) ( l e f t)