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Mission:
The New Pest Advisory Group (NPAG) assesses exotic plant pests that are new or imminent threats to U.S. agriculture or the environment and recommends appropriate actions to the Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ) Deputy Administrator (DA).
What we do:
NPAG evaluates the significance of plant pests through potential economic and environmental impacts and coordinates information sharing and solicitation of expertise from regulatory and subject matter experts. These experts include federal, state, and university personnel that have knowledge of the pest or pest situation. The NPAG evaluation consists of an analysis that results in a brief technical report that provides key information about the pest, and recommendations for how PPQ should respond to a new plant pest or imminent threat.
How we do it:
The following flowchart outlines the NPAG Process. NPAG can be notified of a new pest by a variety of sources, such as any part of PPQ, State Departments of Agriculture, and electronic alerts. When notified, NPAG determines whether to analyze the pest based on its presence or absence in the United States and its quarantine status as a plant pest. NPAG analysts prepare a report by consulting the literature and subject matter experts, and the report goes through a thorough review by NPAG analysts and PPQ representatives (NPAG Liaisons). NPAG forwards pest reports to relevant groups in PPQ, such as National Identification Services, Emergency and Domestic Programs, or others, and consults with the National Plant Board when deregulating pests. When the organism is more urgent, they may forward the report directly to the PPQ Leadership Team, which includes the Deputy Administrator.
Who we are:
NPAG is part of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ) program. It operates out of the Plant Epidemiology and Risk Analysis Laboratory (PERAL), which is part of the Center for Plant Health Science and Technology (CPHST). The NPAG team currently consists of 15 members with expertise in the areas of entomology, plant pathology, ecology, and economics. The team is lead by an NPAG Chair and Executive Secretary:
Chair: David R. Prokrym
Executive Secretary: Christie Bertone
Contact Us:
Email: npag@aphis.usda.gov
Mailing Address: USDA, APHIS, PPQ, CPHST, PERAL
1730 Varsity Drive, Suite 300, Raleigh, NC 27606
Sample NPAG Reports:
The following are examples of pest reports produced by NPAG.
- Asproparthenis punctiventris NPAG Report
- Bruchidius terrenus NPAG Report
- Semanotus bifasciatus NPAG Report
- Chalara fraxinea NPAG ET Report