Walden statement on hearing
to examine GAO report on invasive forest pests

For Immediate Release
June 21, 2006
Contact: Melissa Mazzella DeLaney (202) 226-9019

WASHINGTON - The House Resources Committee's Subcommittee on Forests and Forest Health today examined a recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) report on efforts to detect and eradicate harmful forest insects and diseases.

The report, entitled "Invasive Forest Pests: Lessons Learned from Three Recent Infestations May Aid in Managing Future Efforts," studied the federal response to the Asian Longhorned Beetle, the Emerald Ash Borer and the pathogen that causes Sudden Oak Death.

Subcommittee Chairman Greg Walden's opening statement is as follows:

Most Americans are aware that insects and disease cause considerable damage to our forests, but few are aware how serious this threat has become. Native and non-native pests have already cost this country billions of dollars, damaged millions of acres of forests and imperiled hundreds of species of wildlife. And, the threat is increasing.

For tens of thousands of years, people reached North America and traveled it primarily by foot. A few hundred years ago Europeans started arriving here by ship. In just the last 50 years, air travel has become widespread and common. Global economies are now intertwined as raw materials, products, and people come and go in volumes, numbers and in speed, unimagined by our grandparents. 

As the Center for Disease Control is worried about the transfer of avian flu through countless vectors, I also worry about the exponential increase in opportunities for the introduction of pests that can devastate our forests.

As just one example amply demonstrates - in 1900, the American chestnut often grew to over 100 feet, with a trunk diameter of more than 10 feet, and was the most common and important tree species in the Eastern United States, from Florida to Maine and west to Tennessee and Ohio. It was used to make a multitude of products and the chestnuts themselves were an important food source for people and wildlife. In 1904, the chestnut blight fungus came into the country and by 1940 had spread throughout the entire range of the chestnut, eliminating these trees and forever changing the biodiversity of the east, and having untold economic consequences.

Today, other non-native pests pose similar threats. The emerald ash borer infests more than 40,000 square miles in Michigan , Indiana , Ohio and Ontario . The hemlock wooly adelgid is causing the demise of Eastern hemlocks before our very eyes. The gypsy moth has infested forests in 15 northeastern states and continues to spread. The pathogen causing Sudden Oak Death has entered numerous counties in California and now Oregon , and has recently been found in nursery stock in 20 states. Many other non-native pests are cause for worry, but many native pests are hugely destructive as well. The southern pine beetle alone affects more than 90 million acres of southern forests. Now, due to overstocked stands and drought, the mountain pine beetle poses its greatest threat ever to forests in all western states.

To help address this important problem, we are fortunate to again have the Government Accountability Office here with us today to discuss their recent report on forest pests and give us insight into the structure and status of eradication efforts by government agencies. As always, their recommendations are greatly appreciated.

In addition, we have representatives from the Forest Service and APHIS, to discuss their respective responsibilities and to review problems from their point of view and potential solutions for preventing or containing pest outbreaks.

Finally, we are very pleased to have three experts in the field of forestry, insects and disease to offer their practical knowledge on this important subject. Thank you all for coming here today, I look forward to your testimony and comments.