Title: USDA seeks public comment on a multi-year strategic plan for its plant protection and quarantine program
[USDA Dec. 21, 2010] – The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and
Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is inviting the public to comment on its
draft document, “Road Map to 2015: A Strategic Plan for Plant Protection
and Quarantine.” Once finalized, this strategic plan will guide APHIS’
efforts to protect America’s agriculture and natural resources from the entry,
establishment or spread of exotic animal and plant pests and noxious weeds; to
support U.S. agricultural exports; and to promote safe international
trade.
“With this plan, we will ensure that our agency’s initiatives are
on target to meet the global challenges we are certain to face during the next
five years and beyond,” said Rebecca Bech, deputy administrator for APHIS’ plant
protection and quarantine (PPQ) program. “We have made great progress in
developing this plan, but it will not be complete until we have carefully
reviewed the suggestions and concerns of our stakeholders. I strongly
encourage all interested people and organizations to comment on this
draft.”
In drafting the plan, PPQ analyzed changing patterns and emerging
trends in the agriculture industry, international trade, as well as the
political, economic, scientific and technological arenas. PPQ examined
potential threats to its ability to achieve its mission during the next five
years, as well as opportunities to enhance that ability. PPQ also
identified its internal strengths and weaknesses and assessed all areas of the
program to determine its effectiveness to respond to future
challenges.
The draft plan is structured around three types of strategic
goals: overarching goals that apply to the entire PPQ program, regardless
of program activity; program-specific goals that focus on particular aspects of
PPQ’s safeguarding continuum from pest exclusion to ongoing domestic programs;
and management initiatives that focus on building PPQ’s internal capacity to
achieve the strategic goals. The draft also shows how its strategic
elements link directly to the established strategic goals of APHIS and
USDA.
Because of the plan’s comprehensive nature, PPQ anticipates that a
wide range of stakeholders will be interested in providing comments. These
include producers, importers and exporters of agricultural products, other
federal agencies, state plant regulatory officials, state departments of
forestry and natural resources, similar agencies at the county and local levels,
nongovernmental agencies such as academic institutions, foreign entities and
concerned members of the public.