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place to assure pest-free logs. Improved knowledge of the 

 biological diversity of the biota of Mexico will allow 

 better decisions to be made regarding the ultimate cultural, 

 scientific, and economic value as well as risks. 



It may be impossible to avoid importation of forest products 

 into the country over the short term, but correct decisions 

 about imports will be an important step for the protection 

 of our valuable natural resources. The existing natural 

 resources of Mexico are simply too valuable to put them at 

 risk by large-scale importations of raw wood products. The 

 inadequacy of the present mitigation procedures must be 

 corrected before allowing the importation of such materials. 

 Expecting pests to be eliminated after accidental 

 introduction and establishment is unrealistic, there are too 

 many examples of unsuccessful attempts to control or 

 eradicate a pest once it has become established. 



While the emphasis of this paper has been upon the 

 consequences of raw logs importation on forest resources, it 

 must be remembered that these logs may provide passive 

 transport to potential agricultural pests as well. Any 

 review of environmental hazards should include a careful 

 examination of crops and associated pests in the countries 

 proposing log export. As with the natural resources, the 

 agriculture of Mexico is even more important and to place it 



