USDA Forest Service: 2024 Termiticide Report
| Authors: | Thomas G. Shelton, Craig Bell, Shawn Cooper, Grant T. Kirker, Mark E. Mankowski |
| Year: | 2025 |
| Type: | Magazines or Trade Publications |
| Station: | Forest Products Laboratory |
| Source: | Pest Management Professional |
Abstract
Before new termiticides can be marketed, sold or applied in the United States, they must be registered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Part of this registration process is the collection of efficacy data indicating the product prevents termite movement past treated soil — that the product provides a “barrier.” EPA’s Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPTS) is the registration body that handles candidate termiticides.
Based on methods developed in the late 1930s and 1960s, the guidelines for these efficacy trials are codified in OPPTS 810.3600. Data that are submitted to the EPA need to come from a third party, and the USDA Forest Service (FS), Forest Products Laboratory Durability and Wood Protection unit is responsible for that work. These data are used to determine whether tested concentrations, applied in the studies as a zone of treated soil, are effective at preventing damage to test wood blocks in three field locations in the southeastern United States.