Pest Risk Assessment of the Importation of Larch from Siberia and the Soviet Far East

Abstract

Several timber companies in the United States have expressed an interest in importing unprocessed larch logs from Siberia and the Soviet Far East. A variety of exotic forest pests, including insects, nematodes, and fungi, can be transported on or in logs. Many of these organisms can survive in transit and have a high potential to colonize suitable hosts near ports of entry. Experience has proven that exotic pests can become established in new habitats, sometimes producing devastating effects (see Chapter 3 for six case histories of major exotic pests and their effects). This risk assessment estimates the probability of introduction and establishment of insect and disease organisms imported on logs from Siberia and the Soviet Far East and estimates the potential effects these exotic pests may have on the forest resources and associated ecosystems of the Pacific Northwest and contiguous regions.

Citation

USDA Forest Service 1991. Pest Risk Assessment of the Importation of Larch from Siberia and the Soviet Far East. USDA Forest Service, Miscellaneous Publication No. 1495, September 1991