| |
Return
to News Releases
News Release
10-19-09
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE EXERCISE WILL TEST
FOREST HEALTH RESPONSE CAPABILITIES
Three-day drill first step in six-state emergency simulation.
The West Virginia Department of Agriculture (WVDA) will host a three-day, multi-agency response drill aimed at improving regional response to a forest health emergency. The full-scale exercise will be conducted at the Coonskin Park Family Center Tuesday, October 20, through Thursday, October 22, from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. each day, and will include field activities at Coonskin and other locations in the Charleston area.
West Virginia Commissioner of Agriculture Gus R. Douglass said the scope of the exercise extends far beyond the forest protection activities the WVDA is engaged in on a daily basis.
“This is really a way to improve communication and interaction among government agencies during a civil emergency,” said Commissioner Douglass. “The Department may need to call upon law enforcement, homeland security agencies, local governments and other emergency services during an agricultural emergency – just as they might need our assistance during some other civil emergency. We’re putting all these groups at the table for this exercise.”
He added that recent efforts to contain the Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) show how easily invasive organisms can spread, even when states are on the lookout and there is no intentional human effort to spread them.
“While we take every invasive organism seriously, there really aren’t a lot of Ash trees in this state. There are pests in the United States that could have a much more severe effect on West Virginia. Sudden Oak Death, for example, can kill a healthy oak tree in four or five years. Our forests contain a high percentage of oak, and those trees are very important from an economic standpoint,” said Commissioner Douglass. “And if some person wants to intentionally harm America’s economy, forests, or food supply, the difficulty expands exponentially.”
WVDA Homeland Security Coordinator Matt Blackwood, Ph.D., said the exercise will draw on a variety of state and federal resources – including WVDA’s mobile laboratory, the West Virginia National Guard’s mobile weapons of mass destruction lab and the state’s emergency radio system.
“Although we won’t actually be cutting down trees or analyzing samples in the laboratory, participants to a large extent will be doing what they would be doing during a response,” said Blackwood. “We’ll be looking at a lot of things that typically get overlooked during smaller-scale tabletop exercises. This exercise will be far more comprehensive than any we’ve done in the past.”
He also noted that this drill will also serve as the launching pad for similar drills in six other states.
“Not too many state departments of agriculture have the working relationship that we do with their state Intelligence Fusion Centers. Our Fusion Center will be sending out information generated in our drill to see how well that triggers activities in other states. As far as I know, this is the first time this has been done for an agricultural drill, so we’re interested to see the results,” said Blackwood.
Commissioner Douglass said that the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA-APHIS) – which has helped WVDA plan and conduct previous exercises – is impressed with WVDA’s level of preparation.
“Few if any other states have been able to demonstrate the level of training and abilities that we have here in West Virginia,” said Commissioner Douglass. “I think APHIS will have some surprises in store for this drill and we’re really going to be challenged. But that’s the way we learn.”
Note to media: Photo and interview opportunities are scheduled for Wednesday, October 21. Contact WVDA Communications Officer Buddy Davidson at 304-541-5932 to discuss specific times and places.
The West Virginia Department of Agriculture protects plant, animal and human health through a variety of scientific, regulatory and consumer protection programs, as mandated by state law. The Commissioner of Agriculture is one of six statewide elected officials in West Virginia. Currently, Commissioner Gus R. Douglass is the longest-serving agriculture commissioner in the nation. For more information, visit www.wvagriculture.org.
“The Basis of All Wealth is Agriculture.”
|
