Jeb Bush Signs Citrus Canker Bill

Newsday ^ | March 18, 2002 | BRENT KALLESTAD -- Associated Press Writer

[Willie Green]

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Cutting crews can resume chopping down healthy citrus trees within 1,900 feet of those infected with canker under a bill signed into law Monday by Gov. Jeb Bush.

Despite protests from homeowners, the bill moved quickly through the House and Senate and crews expected to remove another 200,000 trees this year.

"We've got to look at the overall economic impact on our state and move forward," said Bush spokeswoman Elizabeth Hirst.

Agriculture brings in $9 billion a year in central Florida and employs more than 100,000 people.

[Willie Green]

Related thread: FDA Issues Warrant to Juice Plant

I wonder if this is an intentional bio-attack on our domestic crop to facilitate increased imports from Brazil.

[Willie Green]

bump FYI

[gov_bean_ counter]

Does this mean Janet will have to stop campaigning?

[knarf]

Do I have this right??

ONE freepin' tree, in 1995, is the cause of murdering 600,000 Healthy trees.

Leave the victim ... er ... sick one and get rid of the healthy ones.

I get it!

NOT.

Someone in Duh 'splane this to me ... please.

[Sungirl]

ALL:

I really really like Jeb alot...but this has me worried. Can it be true that since there are so many citrus trees in our yards...it takes away too much money from the stores shelves....and Jeb seems to be obligated to curb our trees for his large campaign donations? I hope not.

If it is not true..then I think that for every tree they cut down on us...they replace it with a HEALTHY fruit bearing tree. This is not right.

[Sungirl]

If they find one citrus tree with canker.....then EVERY FRUIT TREE .... HEALTHY OR NOT ~~ MUST be cut down within 1900 feet( i think that's the number). NOT RIGHT. This really pi$$es me off.

[Willie Green]

Do I have this right??
ONE freepin' tree, in 1995, is the cause of murdering 600,000 Healthy trees.

600K are only the backyard trees.
Another 1.5 million were slaughtered in commercial orchards.

It is mass vegi-cide.

[Fish out of Water]

Index bump

[nunya bidness]

I blame the manatees.

[LarryLied]

This is a new canker. It still can be eradicated. If it is not, then everyone in Florida will face it forever. And the cost of keeping trees canker free will not be cheap for homeowners or the industry. Much better to lose a tree or 100,000 trees today than have this canker established in Florida. There may not be a citrus industry here as other states and foreign countries might refuse to allow our fruit in. I check my trees. If canker shows up, I'll call the state that day. I'm grateful they'll take them down for me for free.

[browardchad]

For those who may not be familiar with canker, it's harmless to humans; in fact, the fruit is still edible -- it just looks bad.

I have had these incredibly dumb, sometimes non-English speaking state agricultural workers ring my doorbell so many times that now I simply refuse to answer the door when they come. It seems the first "inspector" wrote down that I had a fruit tree (I've never had one; I know better), and in spite of repeated inspections, back they come, month after month. Yessir, our tax dollars in action -- saving the world from the dreaded canker.

[summer]

bttt to your post #11.

[I still care]

I have a small backyard, but I have the most wonderful old citrus trees. Everyone tells me my tangerines are the sweetest they have ever tasted, and I also have a blood orange, a lemon (sour orange), a navel and some sort of late juice orange. There is not a drop of acid flavor in the juice. I think they are what gives my house its value, everyone in the neighborhood likes the fruit from my trees, and every year people never forget to ask me for fruit. I can see not getting this new canker established but man, would I be upset if I lose my trees. 1900 feet seems such a long way too - that means if a tree 7 or 8 blocks over has a problem, my trees have to go. That frankly scares me a little bit.

[summer]

From FL's canker homepage -- I will post link:

Summary of the Justification for Removing Canker-Exposed Trees within 1900 Feet of Infected Trees

An epidemiological study is designed to track disease spread so that intelligent regulatory or other disease management options can be targeted to best advantage. Epidemiological studies conducted in both commercial and residential citrus in Florida and South America over the last 10 years have strongly reinforced the concept that removal of citrus exposed to citrus canker inoculum from infected trees is an essential component of any successful eradication program.

Inoculum of the canker pathogen is dispersed in two ways: via wind-blown rain, and by human activity that involves the transport of infected or contaminated plants, tools, clothing, etc. The removal of exposed plants is crucial for eradication because the best detection methods currently available for disease detection are always well behind the actual expression of the disease on host plants. Delays in detection are caused by slow expression of detectable disease symptoms after infection and the constraints on visual survey methods.

The most recent epidemiological study used mixed age and varieties of residential citrus, and was conducted in North Dade and South Broward Counties during 1998-99. A description of this study is being prepared for publication. The study was done in an area where canker was only recently established, where the citrus leafminer was present (a new factor in the epidemiological equation for the Western Hemisphere), and where many thousands of trees in four separate sites could be monitored to provide the data for the study. This scenario was made possible only because of the unfortunate continued spread of the disease into new areas in spite of various protocols that had been utilized previously in the program. Previous methods included hatracking exposed trees; removing all exposed trees within 125 feet; removing of all infected trees; and only infected trees as soon as possible after discovery.

Four study sites were selected based on their relative isolation from each other, the recent appearance of only a few infected trees in each area, and the absence of the disease in the surrounding citrus. At the beginning, all citrus (ca. 19,000) in the vicinity were identified and their location plotted using satellite-based global positioning technology. The disease status of each tree in the study area was then determined on a 30-day basis by a field plant pathologist. The trees infected at the outset were identified as focal trees, and presumed to be the direct or indirect source of inoculum for all subsequent disease development in the area. The data taken on each visit consisted of a determination of whether canker lesions were present or absent, host variety and age/size, lesion age, an estimate of disease severity based on percent of canopy exhibiting lesions, and location of the lesions within the canopy. Data was collected every 30 days at each of the study sites to monitor disease progress over time through the area. All trees remained in place throughout the course of the study.

The main conclusion that can be drawn from the composite data is that subsequent infections resulting from inoculum dispersal from focal trees lie within approximately 1200 feet 90% of the time, within 1900 feet 95% of the time, and within 2700 feet 99% of the time. In other words, in order to eliminate the next generation of canker infections (ones that are already established and not yet detected), the project will be successful nineteen times out of twenty if all citrus trees within 1900 feet of the infected tree(s) are removed. The program selected the 95% success level as striking a balance between taking too few and too many trees and still reaching the goal of eradication.

Prepared by Drs. Tim Schubert, Wayne Dixon, and Xiaoan Sun

Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
Division of Plant Industry
PO Box 147100
Gainesville, FL 32614

[summer]

Frequently Asked Questions about Canker

[summer]

Citrus Canker Homepage

Also see my above posts.

[summer]

See my posts #15, 16 and 17 for more information! :)

[summer]

In short, from the FAQ page --

Why do citrus trees within 1,900 feet of a citrus canker infested tree have to be destroyed?

The 1,900 feet distance was determined from a specific research study conducted by experienced plant pathologists under the weather conditions in South Florida. Over 15,000 trees were identified and monitored for evidence of citrus canker disease. From this research, they determined that approximately 95% of the exposed trees that became diseased were up to 1,900 feet away from a single disease-positive tree.

It was further found that the previously used distance of 125 feet for exposed trees captured only 20% of the trees likely to be infected by the disease from a disease-positive tree. Using 125 feet to determine what exposed trees to remove meant that up to 80% of the trees not yet showing canker symptoms were being left to further spread the disease.,

[summer]

Also see post #19 above. :)