Dec. 16, 2002

Signs to aid in protecting eradication investment

Southern Rolling Plains cotton growers will soon see new signs of the state’s support for their eradication efforts.

The Texas Department of Transportation has approved placing road signs on the major highways entering the zone. The signs will tell travelers that the zone is a boll weevil free area, that quarantine restrictions are in effect, and that violations of the restrictions could result in penalties of up to $5,000 a day.

The announcement that the signs would be erected came from Texas Department of Agriculture officials at the Board of Directors meeting of the Texas Boll Weevil Eradication Foundation last month.

Details of the signs’ size and wording are still being worked out, Brian Murray of TDA told the board, but they should be in place by the time the next growing season begins.

The zone was declared functionally eradicated in September 2000, and traps placed by the foundation in the zone did not record a single weevil catch during the 2001 growing season. Late in the 2002 season, however, a small number of weevils were caught in the zone.

Evidence suggested that some of the problem was created by cotton harvesting equipment from outside the area passing through the zone, said Charles Allen, program director for the foundation. Harvesting equipment that has not been thoroughly cleaned can harbor weevils that will leave the equipment for more attractive cotton fields.

The signs will serve as a reminder to drivers hauling equipment into or through the zone that they are required to ensure the equipment is clean and completely free of cotton and cotton-plant parts before entering the zone.

Details of the regulations are available from TDA.

Growers in the zone are encouraged to contact TDA by calling (800) TELL-TDA, (800) 835-5832, if they suspect unclean equipment has entered the area. Calls should be made as quickly as possible after noticing the suspected violation to aid TDA inspectors in locating and checking the equipment for violations.

The Texas Boll Weevil Eradication Foundation is a nonprofit, grower-initiated and funded organization dedicated to eliminating the cotton boll weevil from the state in the most cost-effective and environmentally responsible manner possible.